Remote control: Online system allows checks of patients from home
By Gillian Graham
Staff Writer
Debbi Lord slips a blood pressure cuff onto her arm and, with the press of few buttons, records an accurate reading that nurses monitor miles away.
Every morning for the past six weeks, the Cape Porpoise resident has sat at her kitchen counter to monitor her blood pressure and heart rate through the Telehealth program offered by Southern Maine Medical Center Visiting Nurses.
Nurse Jan Prewitt-Small said the technology allows visiting nurses to monitor patients’ health through a Web site and easily send data to doctors.
Information recorded by patients is sent through telephone lines to the office, where she can view charts following their blood, pressure, heath rate, pulse oximetry, temperature, weight, blood glucose and heart rhythm.
Southern Maine Medical Center recently received a $40,000 “Giving Back: A Health Collaboration” from Universal American to buy additional Telehealth monitors. The facility currently uses 25 of the $5,000 units to monitor patients throughout York County, according to Elaine Brady, executive director of SMMC Visiting Nurses. The grant will allow the agency to serve an additional 30 patients.
Bob Downs, vice president and general manager of Universal American in Maine, said SMMC was chosen to receive the grant because the Telehealth program keeps seniors in their homes while helping them with chronic diseases.
“We thought it was a terrific program. We felt there were so many positives with this program,” he said. “This is truly the kind of stuff health care reform needs to be looking at.”
Brady said SMMC Visiting Nurses began using Telehealth technology in 2007. A study of its effectiveness after less than a year found it worked best for patients with congestive heart failure. Use of the system has led to fewer repeat hospitalizations and a slight decrease in face-to-face visits with patients who don’t need to be monitored as closely, she said.
More importantly, Brady said, patients say they feel more secure and better understand their health issues.
“It’s a stress reliever,” Lord agreed. “You know someone is really checking on you.”
Prewitt-Small said patients use the monitors for different lengths of time and check for different readings based on their health needs. Seeing daily readings helps nurses intervene early if patients develop problems, she said.
“The idea is they don’t go into the emergency room. It’s been great to send the information to the doctors to let them know how their patients are doing on a day to day basis,” she said. “It helps patients become more aware of what their normal numbers are and their own health.”
“It actually connects the dots for patients,” Brady added. ‘They’re invested in their own health care.”
Prewitt-Small said the monitor is programmed for each patient, who is then trained on how to properly use the technology. The monitor walks patients through each of their readings and has been successfully used by patients who do not use computers.
Lord said she was surprised how easy the monitor is to use.
“It becomes your new best friend,” she said. “I’m glad it’s here.”
Staff Writer
Debbi Lord slips a blood pressure cuff onto her arm and, with the press of few buttons, records an accurate reading that nurses monitor miles away.
Every morning for the past six weeks, the Cape Porpoise resident has sat at her kitchen counter to monitor her blood pressure and heart rate through the Telehealth program offered by Southern Maine Medical Center Visiting Nurses.
Nurse Jan Prewitt-Small said the technology allows visiting nurses to monitor patients’ health through a Web site and easily send data to doctors.
Information recorded by patients is sent through telephone lines to the office, where she can view charts following their blood, pressure, heath rate, pulse oximetry, temperature, weight, blood glucose and heart rhythm.
Southern Maine Medical Center recently received a $40,000 “Giving Back: A Health Collaboration” from Universal American to buy additional Telehealth monitors. The facility currently uses 25 of the $5,000 units to monitor patients throughout York County, according to Elaine Brady, executive director of SMMC Visiting Nurses. The grant will allow the agency to serve an additional 30 patients.
Bob Downs, vice president and general manager of Universal American in Maine, said SMMC was chosen to receive the grant because the Telehealth program keeps seniors in their homes while helping them with chronic diseases.
“We thought it was a terrific program. We felt there were so many positives with this program,” he said. “This is truly the kind of stuff health care reform needs to be looking at.”
Brady said SMMC Visiting Nurses began using Telehealth technology in 2007. A study of its effectiveness after less than a year found it worked best for patients with congestive heart failure. Use of the system has led to fewer repeat hospitalizations and a slight decrease in face-to-face visits with patients who don’t need to be monitored as closely, she said.
More importantly, Brady said, patients say they feel more secure and better understand their health issues.
“It’s a stress reliever,” Lord agreed. “You know someone is really checking on you.”
Prewitt-Small said patients use the monitors for different lengths of time and check for different readings based on their health needs. Seeing daily readings helps nurses intervene early if patients develop problems, she said.
“The idea is they don’t go into the emergency room. It’s been great to send the information to the doctors to let them know how their patients are doing on a day to day basis,” she said. “It helps patients become more aware of what their normal numbers are and their own health.”
“It actually connects the dots for patients,” Brady added. ‘They’re invested in their own health care.”
Prewitt-Small said the monitor is programmed for each patient, who is then trained on how to properly use the technology. The monitor walks patients through each of their readings and has been successfully used by patients who do not use computers.
Lord said she was surprised how easy the monitor is to use.
“It becomes your new best friend,” she said. “I’m glad it’s here.”
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