The Role Of Remote Patient Monitoring In The Future Of Healthcare

Chidinma Nwonye
Jul 18, 2023
2 min read

Updated: Sep 17, 2023

✍🏾 Chidinma Nwonye | SEO Content Writer & Poet

The possibility of virtually monitoring specific aspects of a patient’s health has increased since the pandemic. From improved doctor-patient communication to virtual care, remote monitoring of patients offers various benefits to the healthcare sector globally.

Research shows that remotely monitored patients report a 76% decrease in re-admission and an 89% rise in patient satisfaction.

What is Remote Patient Monitoring? 🧠

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is a method of tracking patients' health away from a hospital or other traditional healthcare setting.

It is a subdivision of homecare telehealth that lets patients use their mobile technology and devices to collect patient-generated health data.

These data are subsequently sent to the appropriate healthcare personnel. There are telehealth software applications that aim to be user-friendly and can easily be installed on a smartphone, computer, or tablet.

Some common conditions that can be monitored through RPM include:

Diabetes
High blood pressure
Chronic obstructive pulmonary illnesses
Heart conditions
Asthma
Sleep apnea

What are some examples of RPM technologies? 🥭

Remote patient monitoring technology can vary from online platforms to mobile and portable devices.

Some examples include:

Blood pressure/heart rate monitors
Glucose meters for diabetic patients
Remote devices for infertility monitoring and treatment
Continual surveillance monitors with the ability to track patients with issues like dementia. These devices can notify healthcare personnel in the event of patient falls.
Home tests that ensure accountability for substance abuse patients. It further keeps them on track with their objectives.
Diet logging or caloric intake programs
Pulse oximeters
Apnea monitors
Breathing apparatuses

What are the benefits of RPM? 🦠

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about many technological advancements (including RPM) that have improved healthcare services.

RPM can strengthen the patient-provider, boost patient satisfaction, and ensure a smooth recovery process.

RPM can benefit patients, providers, caregivers, and healthcare infrastructures by:

1. Alleviating Clinical Staff Shortage

A significant benefit of RPM is enabling healthcare personnel to prioritize effectiveness-of-care delivery. Additionally, RPM services offer virtual visits thereby reducing the in-person visits burden by clinicians.

These devices synchronise doctors’ electronic health records software to reduce the risk of duplicating documents. Overall, the RPM uses a team-based model that enables provider flexibility.

2. Enhancing Mental Wellbeing

In addition to bringing comfort and flexibility, RPM also enhances patient engagement and satisfaction. It guarantees the patients of constant monitoring by a team of health experts, thereby enabling them to have peace of mind. Furthermore, the American Heart Association proves this fact through its report showing that RPM is associated with lower blood pressure compared to traditional methods.

3. Reducing Care Cost

RPM has significantly reduced the volume of in-person patient care, reducing readmissions and consultation costs. It further enables the shifting of required acute care levels and critical care monitoring into patients' homes, ultimately, reducing the increased cost of inpatient care.

4. Improving Patient Self-Care

RPM helps patients experiencing COVID-19 infections, one or multiple chronic conditions, and maternity and child needs.

It also benefits patients undergoing post-surgical recovery by availing them of easily accessible, disease-specific, and comprehensive tools.

5. Increasing Net Patient Revenue

RPM boosts work efficiency, decreases administrative costs, and improves staff productivity. This, ultimately, leads to an increase in net patient revenue for organisations that utilise them.

(Net patient revenue is the money generated, after expenses, from patient services collected from payers, including private insurance, Medicaid and Medicare.)