Introduction

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) has been recognized as a subcategory of homecare telehealth that helps patients to use mobile medical devices and applications to gather “patient-generated health data (PGHD)” and send it to healthcare professionals. In the current situation after the emergence of the pandemic in the year 2020, telemedicine has become more popular in society. In that critical situation when maintaining social distancing was the major solution to prevent the disease, telemedicine was the solution that saves millions of people’s life (Palombini et al. 2022). Common physiological data such as “weight, blood pressure, and heart rate” can be gathered through the RPM programs. Regular updates on the patient’s condition can be availed through the use of this program. On the one hand, Dissertation Assignment Help, this is effective in monitoring the patients continuously, on the other hand, desired doctors can be consulted regardless of distance and time. In this article, the discussion on RPM telemedicine and the way this new method is reshaping the healthcare industry is going to be discussed.

Discussion

RPM Telemedicine

RPM is a method of healthcare delivery that involves with the latest advanced information technology in order to gather patient data and to deliver this to the doctors. This has been mostly used in the case of chronic diseases, post-discharge care, do my assignment or in the case of senior patient care. In case of the chronic diseases the use of RPM telemedicine is proved to be most effective. Continuous updates on the condition of the patients can be available which is effective in monitoring and changes in the medicines can also be done according to the condition of the patients. Doctors from anywhere can be connected through this and patients can get professional services. As per the view of Rincon, (2019) out of the traditional setting, remote patient management provides more facilities to the patients to get treatment from home. Managing own health in a comfortable infrastructure has become easier with the use of advanced technology and telemedicine facility. The level of comfort of the patients increases their engagement levels with the patient monitoring technologies and telemedicine methods. In the opinion of Kirkland et al. (2021) the constant reading of the data is also beneficial for the doctors to have a clear picture of the patient’s condition and therefore prescribing medicines has become easier. RPM provides details on the patient’s condition and therefore this has been accepted by the healthcare professionals and the patients as well.

Different types of RPM devices can be used by patients for continuous monitoring of the patient’s condition.

First of all Write that Essay “Glucose meters” is one of the popular RPM device that has been used by patients for monitoring diabetes. The blood glucose level can be measured during fasting conditions and after lunch (O’Hara et al. 2020). Continuous monitoring is necessary or patients who are suffering from high glucose levels. From the data healthcare professionals can understand the necessity of insulin and they can recommend the use of insulin.
Further, heart rate and blood pressure monitoring can also be done through RPM devices such as “Heart-Rate monitors”. “Blood- Pressure Cuffs” has been used for measuring blood pressure (Roblyer, 2020). Continuous heart rate monitoring is beneficial for patients to reduce the chance of heart attack.

Figure 1: Blood-Pressure Cuffs

(Source: Roblyer, 2020)

Oximeters is also one of the most important devices that have been widely used by people for measuring blood-oxygen levels. During the time of the pandemic, this has been widely accepted by people for continuous measurement of blood oxygen levels. Dropping of the blood oxygen level can be a major indicator of arising breathing issues or any other emergency situation for the patient (Roblyer, 2020). With the use of this device, one can easily identify the deteriorating situation of the patients and can manage the arrangements of external oxygen supply.

Figure 2: Oximeter

(Source: Bajowala et al. 2022)

In addition to this, continuous surveillance monitoring can also be used for patients with conditions like dementia. Through the data, healthcare professionals can assume the event like a fall and can take necessary steps for treatment.

Through the use of these devices, telemedicine is providing easy and convenient virtual care to the needy patients. Gathering data in the case of a high-risk patient has been easier with the implication of the RPM devices. The constant monitoring method helps in the identification of the improving or deteriorating situation of the patients.

The way remote patient monitoring works

The use of the RPM technique may vary widely depending upon the use of the devices for monitoring the condition of the patients. Most of the RPM devices have been following the same technology and following a similar method. The first and the most important feature of all the devices is that they are wireless and have sensors that can identify specific physiological parameters, and collect and store data in the devices. As per the view of Gross, (2020) RPM devices are commonly connected with “healthcare provider databases and related applications”. Applications have an interface that is effective in tracking and monitoring the data and also analyzing the current data with the previously collected ones and helps in providing treatment recommendations.

The data gathered through the RPM devices have commonly been sent to the proper location and stored in a relational database. This is beneficial for healthcare professionals to analyze the patient history and they could also have a look at the present condition of the patient. The devices often sent a notification to the patient in case any issue was found in the results or when a healthcare provider noticed any issue in the data (Alanazi, 2020). The notifications function as an alert to the patients and they can take serious steps depending on the results. The family members also can detect the issues in the patient’s condition and therefore they could be able to take fast step for providing appropriate treatment to the patients. The data stored in the RPM devices is the most beneficial factor of these devices and therefore diagnosis has become easier for healthcare professionals (Bajowala et al. 2022). The authenticity of the data can be maintained through this process and therefore treatment of the patients can be done in an effective manner. This is effective in taking faster steps in an emergency situation. In addition to this, the mortality rate of patients can be reduced through the use of RPM devices. For example, it can be stated that during the time of the pandemic when the hospital organizations failed to manage the treatment processes and failed to provide beds to the patients, in that situation the use of RPM devices helped the patients to identify their situation. This has also helped healthcare professionals to treat patients online by maintaining distance and depending upon daily updates they can also assess the chances of a crisis that may occur in the patient. Through the use of the RPM devices such as oximeters, the patients monitored their oxygen levels, and by this process, the scarcity of beds and treatment has been solved in the second wave of the pandemic. Hence it can be mentioned that people have understood the application of the RPM software and have identified the use of the devices during the crisis of pandemic in the year 2020 (Davis et al. 2022). After the emergence of the pandemic, people have become familiar with the use of RPM devices and also have understood the concept of telemedicine.

Effectiveness of the use of remote patient monitoring

RPM telemedicine facilitates patients by providing real-time data on the patient’s condition at their fingertips 24/7. This has simplified the activities of clinicians and healthcare professionals and helps them in providing quality services to patients. At the same time, higher-quality care can be provided to a larger section of patients at the same time. Along with this, the patients can also be able to reduce their unnecessary expenses in medical tests after investing onetime in the business.

Constant Accessibility: Getting an appointment with the doctors and doing the checkups from them is a full-day matter. In order to do so people needs to take a break from their regular busy schedule and have to go for a check-up. In most of the time, it is not possible for everyone to compromise a whole day behind one doctor visit. Along with this, sometimes people also have transportation difficulties with their toddlers and aging parents. All the constraints in the present condition related to medical treatments can be solved by providing care via RPM telemedicine technology (McAlpin, 2020). In remote areas and rural areas where the accessibility to a proper and good healthcare system is absent, there also healthcare facilities can be provided through RPM telemedicine technology. Through RPM telemedicine technology the patients can receive personalized treatment facilities and at the same time, they do not need to travel a long way to the doctors. Therefore, this can be mentioned that this is the most convenient and accessible method that can be availed by everyone from any corner of the world.
Patient Engagement: RPM telemedicine technology is associated with a two-way communication process in order to receive the best results. Through this process the patients can be able to discuss their issues clearly to the doctors. In this method, the engagement of the patient and their family members are essential for the self-monitoring method (Kvedar et al. 2022). RPM will be successful in-patient care if the patients are equally cooperating with the doctors from anywhere of the globe. In this treatment method the distance of the patient and the doctors does not make any sense, the involvement of the patient has been identified as the major factor the successful treatments (DuBose-Morris et al. 2022). In most cases if the patient is a positive thinker and paying full attention to the treatment then recovering has been found to be very easy. Only in the case of a patient’s chronic ailment, this has become difficult to treat the patients with RPM telemedicine. In this case, nurses are necessary for monitoring and communication purpose.
Quality Care: Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) telemedicine services provide instant facility to patients who need urgent services. Doctors can reach to patients that are struggling with any kind of treatment blues (Casal et al. 2021). This is the most comfortable manner to provide patients with emergency treatment. Quality treatment is life-saving and can also reduce the chance of greater health accidents. Patients can reduce the risk factors and can increase their chance of survival. Therefore, most of the people are relying on this medical facility and accept this largely.
Better Outcome: This method provides facilities to the patients as the patients do not have to scramble for appointments and they also do not need to manage their time to visit the doctors. This is the most affordable method of treatment from every corner. In this method along with the patient’s view the health data you gather via RPM technology also has been assessed by the doctors (Hidefjäll et al. 2023). Therefore, better patient engagement leads to the better patient outcomes. Through rapid interventions the critical situations can be managed effectively.

Statistics on the use of RPM telemedicine

The global telemedicine market is growing fast and significantly in recent years. After the emergence of the pandemic, the concept of telemedicine is more acceptable to people. People have become understand the effectiveness of RPM telemedicine and enjoying the benefits of this advanced technology. According to the view of Krupinski and Shea, (2022) North America has the largest telemedicine market and this is estimated to grow at about 35 billion dollars by the year 2025. The variety of products and applications are providing major facilities to the patients in receiving immediate solutions that encourage the use of RPM telemedicine. The variety of products and the real-time experience is influencing people to use the application.

Figure 3: The expected growth of the Global telemedicine market

(Source: Statista, 2023a)

In reference to the reports of Statista, this can be mentioned that the global telemedicine market is going to be expanded up to 460 billion U.S. dollars by the year 2030 (Statista, 2023a). Several factors are influencing the growth of the telemedicine market. The traditional treatment methods are associated with a huge amount of expenses which has become unbearable to several families. In comparison to the traditional treatment methods, the new age telemedicine is more convenient to use and is way cheaper. Along with other benefits, the increasing number of digital health users is also a major reason behind the expansion of the global telemedicine market. However, in the report, this has also been mentioned that the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic is also a major reason behind the growing popularity of telemedicine.

Figure 4: Ratings shared by the users of the telehealth services

(Source: Statista, 2023b)

People are experiencing the benefits of RPM technology and therefore show their interest in using those products. From a survey in the US in the year 2020 this has been found that people have excellent experience after using the application. The report of Statista also dictates that 34% of people ages of 18 and 64 rated Telehealth or telemedicine very well (Statista, 2023b). Very few percent of people declare that they have not been benefited from the use of telemedicine. Other than that, most of the participants have accepted the fact that the use of telemedicine is beneficial and people have successfully received better treatment at less expense and they are receiving this remotely. People have become successful in reducing the associated cost of the treatment methods. The increasing acceptance of the patients is increasing the chance of RPM telemedicine and therefore it has been receiving the chance to reshape the healthcare industry.

Conclusion

It can be concluded from the discussion that people in the present days are very busy with their daily schedule and this is difficult for them to take out time for a whole day to visit a doctor. In that scenario, the concept of RPM telemedicine is effective for the people as this provides real-time data on their physical conditions, and depending upon their physical state they can also be able to get a consultation with doctors from anywhere in the globe. The less expensive, accurate, and effective method of treatment has become more interesting for people, and the acceptance of RPM telemedicine is increasing among them. The increasing popularity of RPM telemedicine after the emergence of the pandemic has broadened their opportunity in the market and increased acceptance towards people. After the pandemic people have become aware of wireless and real-time devices and have understood their benefits. With positive impacts on the treatment methods of people RPM telemedicine in entering in the healthcare society and has taken a bold step in reshaping the healthcare industry.

References

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