Remecare monitors COVID patients at home
Remedus, the developer of telemonitoring technology Remecare, is joining forces with the Huisartsenkring Aalst, the Aalst hospitals OLV and A.S.Z., the Z-plus care centre and the homecare organisation i-mens in a pilot project by the RIZIV in which COVID-19 patients can be safely followed up from home via telemonitoring.
With the pilot project, the initiators want to demonstrate the added value of telemonitoring in primary care. The remote care follow-up should relieve GPs and enable COVID-19 patients to remain at home in their familiar surroundings for a longer period, thus also relieving the emergency services. Additionally, this will increase capacity in hospitals by allowing patients to recover safely at home.
"This solution increases the quality of care for the patient, who can safely go home faster. It also helps the hospital with the acute need to keep beds free. This is a good example of how telemonitoring and cooperation between different healthcare organisations can make healthcare more qualitative and efficient. ", says Jo Ravelingien (Remedus), who was able to personally explain the project to Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke.
Doctors can register patients for this telemonitoring care programme via the Z-plus care centre. The nurses at the care centre inform each patient, and after approval the patient receives a telemonitoring box at home. This box contains measuring equipment with which the patient can measure certain parameters such as oxygen saturation, respiration frequency, heart rate and temperature. If necessary, the patient is also given a tablet so they can receive assistance via video calls when using the equipment. Mederi's home nurses and/or i-mens can also be called in for assistance. The data is automatically uploaded into the secure data platform Remecare. The Z-plus controllers monitor the patients remotely, 24 hours a day, together with the other care partners.
The care pathway management system Remecare, developed by Remedus, gives the patient and all care providers in the multidisciplinary care team access to relevant health data and information.
Through the Remecare app, the patient has secure access to the care path diary that guides him/her through the daily scheduled measurements of vital parameters and symptom records.
Apart from the patient, all care providers can register their care performances, observations and medication administration in Remecare. The responsible care provider is informed at the right moment of any changes in the patient's health condition and can adjust the treatment to the individual needs of the patient quicker and more efficiently. The medical dashboard helps the healthcare provider to get a good picture of the patient's health condition in a single glance, allowing a much more targeted (tele)consultation or decision to be taken remotely. In this respect, telemonitoring is something that Mederi, i-mens, Remedus and the other care partners also want to work on alongside COVID-19.
Dr Piet Vercauter, pulmonologist OLV Hospital: "Thanks to this solution, we can allow COVID patients who are admitted to our hospital to return home more quickly and safely. After all, because of the preventive measures, no visitors are allowed during their stay in hospital, and that can sometimes be difficult to bear. Moreover, thanks to this solution, we can slightly reduce the number of beds reserved for COVID patients in our hospital, leaving them available for the regular care of non-COVID patients".
If you would like to receive more information about this project or RemeCare's telemonitoring application, you can contact us here.
