Remote patient monitoring can help medical services reduce costs by reducing the number of office visits. For example, prescriptions, co-pays, and emergency room visits can quickly accumulate and result in lost earnings. By offering CMS remote patient monitoring, these costs can be avoided. Additionally, fewer office visits mean fewer emergency room visits and office co-pays and fewer lost work hours. These benefits can have a profound impact on patient outcomes.
Reduces office visits
The use of remote patient monitoring (RPM) devices is a great way to decrease unnecessary office visits while also monitoring patients remotely. Remote monitoring devices help physicians monitor a patient’s health closely and send notifications to them whenever anything unusual occurs. The benefits of using RPM extend beyond just reducing office visits, however. Furthermore, remote patient monitoring can also increase productivity in the doctor’s office by reducing staff workload.
One of the biggest costs in health care is chronic conditions. These patients visit hospitals or clinics frequently and face high rates of COVID complications. According to a survey by Deloitte in 2020, patients are also more comfortable with technology-enabled services. Remote patient monitoring helps ease this burden by collecting data on chronic patients from the comfort of their own homes. The use of remote patient monitoring reduces office visits and saves money.
Prevents unnecessary hospitalizations
Telemedicine enables healthcare providers to provide high-quality care to patients who cannot visit a doctor. This technology helps reduce the financial burden of patients while preserving the isolation precautions required by physicians. In addition, patients benefit from fewer office visits, co-pays, and emergency room bills. Additionally, fewer hospitalizations mean less strain on hospital staff and more bed space for more serious patients.
The telehealth program provided a physician and patient comfort by collecting vital signs and other data from patients. It also allowed the monitoring team to track patients between formal interactions with the health care system. Daily tracking of patients’ conditions allows healthcare providers to intervene early and optimize treatment. For patients with chronic diseases, regular monitoring can prevent the progression of a condition and save hospital resources. In addition to reducing hospitalization costs, it also provides physicians with peace of mind. They know that their patients are being monitored by a nurse practitioner who can spot problems before they cause unnecessary hospitalizations and avoid the need for costly emergency room visits.
Controls costs
A new study from Harvard University and the Boston Scientific Company reveals that nearly 86 percent of all medical spending is attributed to chronic diseases. This figure includes doctor visits, hospitalizations, and prescription costs. If these costs remain out of control, payers face high risk. Remote patient monitoring reduces the need for in-person visits and hospitalizations. In addition, it increases efficiency by enabling doctors to communicate with patients through a single device.
According to Dr. Kvedar, founder of The Center for Connected Health, one telehealth nurse can oversee 80 and 100 patients. You can then divide the annual staffing cost of that nurse by 80-100 patients. Most sophisticated remote patient monitoring systems are software-based and require subscriptions and maintenance fees. These fees are not included in the traditional RPM cost. Instead, you should include staffing costs when calculating ROI.
Improves outcomes
Studies show that remote patient monitoring helps reduce hospitalizations and ER visits. According to Spyglass Consulting Group, 88 percent of hospitals and health systems use remote patient monitoring. In addition, it can help health providers better manage high-risk or unstable patients. As a result, it can cut hospital readmission rates and ER visits while reducing staff workload and costs. This research highlights several reasons why remote patient monitoring can benefit the health care system.
In a recent study, 1,000 patients were enrolled from seven hospitals. In addition to following traditional post-op care guidelines, patients were offered remote patient monitoring devices. These devices recorded vital signs and answered periodic surveys. The data was sent back to the healthcare organization in real-time. Nurses could jump on a video chat to view data or interact with patients. In addition, if a patient did not respond for three days, nursing staff could call and make alternative arrangements for their care.
Improves security
Health IT vendors are increasingly important in healthcare environments. When medical services opt for remote patient monitoring, they need to find a vendor that shares their values and is focused on protecting patient privacy. A vendor that does not prioritize security is unlikely to fit into the workflow. On the other hand, a vendor that values security is more likely to partner with healthcare organizations to improve security. However, this does not mean that a remote monitoring vendor should be the last choice.
Regardless of the benefits of remote patient monitoring, it’s essential to take the time to implement effective cybersecurity measures. Data breaches can have devastating effects on medical providers, and the costs of resolving them are large. IBM estimates that the average cost of a data breach is $6.4 million for small practices and higher for large health systems. It doesn’t even include the costs of figuring out which patient information has been compromised. In addition, a compromised patient’s personal information can be used by criminals to open accounts or take out loans. Therefore, it’s essential to implement security measures to prevent data breaches.
