How did the pandemic COVID-19 affect patients and patient care (RPM)?
Pandemic numbers are skyrocketing. Most patients are worried about COVID, and how this could potentially affect their long-term patient care.
Sonni Hall, Clinical Director at SynsorMed, discusses how remote patient monitoring (RPM) helps educate patients while keeping them at home and engaged in their care.
How are patients dealing with remote care due to the pandemic?
Most patients are concerned because they feel that there is a gap between in-person visits and remote care.
Patients feel like their needs may not be met the same way compared to when they could see the doctor and speak to them physically.
However, you don’t need to visit a doctor’s office to get quality care. With the help of a physician and RPM, patients can now receive care without having to physically visit the doctor’s office. Instead, patients can talk to someone on the phone who understands their condition.
RPM fills the gap between in-person visits and meeting a patient’s needs without them going into the office.
How has remote patient monitoring helped patients?
There are three ways RPM has helped patients during the pandemic.
First, the CDC recommends that immunocompromised patients stay away from crowds. This means that people may avoid going to the doctor to avoid increasing the risk of infection, but they still need to visit a doctor to treat their health problems. RPM is the solution to give immunocompromised patients care from the safety of their own home.
Second, RPM helps people stay engaged with their medical treatment. There’s a difference between having a chronic condition and being able to manage it. RPM encourages patients to continue taking their medication on time, to continue monitoring, and to be able to provide information on symptoms or anything they may experience, on any exacerbation, or even on any exposure to COVID.
Finally, RPM gives connection. Patients using RPM are assigned a healthcare worker who is monitoring their condition and can alert a patient’s doctor about any unusual readings. This puts patients at ease because they know there’s a healthcare worker that is knowledgeable about their condition aiding them.
What’s the future of remote patient monitoring in a post-COVID world?
Sonni said it best:
“Having remote patient monitoring is, I believe, one of the best things that have happened in healthcare. And I think we have a place in the future.
I believe we’re like a middleman between the doctor’s office and the patient. We allow the patients to have that person that checks on them in between their visits. And the gratitude that we get from the patients is amazing.”
Conclusion
Listen to the full podcast episode with Sonni Hall, Clinical Director at SynsorMed, by clicking here: The Virtual Care Show: Episode 1
The Virtual Patient Care Show is your weekly take on all things related to the new care models in healthcare, remote patient monitoring, chronic care management, and hospital at home. Like and subscribe on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever else you listen to podcasts.
