Hypertension, commonly referred to as high blood pressure, is one of the leading medical ailments in the United States. It is estimated that nearly half of the adult population in the country suffers from this disease, and only one out of every four hypertension patients has it under control.
However, its widespread prevalence does not eliminate its various negative consequences. It is one of the leading risk factors for stroke, cardiovascular disorders, and many other severe conditions, making its management and control highly necessary.
Remote patient monitoring is one of the most suitable and effective methods of controlling hypertension, and this writing focuses on this very domain.
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What is Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM)?
Commonly abbreviated as RPM, remote patient monitoring is one of the most advanced methods of healthcare technology administration that involves the use of the latest inventions in information technology to gather healthcare data. Remote patient monitoring moves the arena of healthcare out of its traditional threshold and presents it as a personalized experience by taking it into people’s homes and work lives.
RPM allows medical professionals to gather data related to a patient’s condition without having them come into the hospital. Using technology such as smartwatches, smartphones, laptops, computers, and personalized devices, RPM bridges the area between the traditional healthcare settings and where people live every day.
Remote patient monitoring isn’t just beneficial for medical professionals; it is highly advantageous for patients as well. That is why it is gaining increasing popularity all across the globe and is widely used by people from all age groups. RPM adds to a patient’s comfort by increasing their engagement levels and making them feel comfortable with managing their own health. This also helps improve the quality of administered healthcare, as medical professionals can make the necessary amendments to medications or treatment plans by reviewing the data collected at frequent intervals. This constant stream of data offers a clear picture of a patient’s medical condition, thus giving medical professionals the power to comprehend the changes occurring in them on almost a daily basis.
In addition, remote patient monitoring also eliminates the need for patients to come into the hospital or a medical facility for continuous checkups, providing them with the ease of staying at home and enjoying the healthcare facilities they avail at a hospital. This also reduces the cost of healthcare, transportation, parking, child care, work leave, and much more.
Hypertension and Its Prevalence
Hypertension tops the list stating the leading causes of deaths in the United States. It caused nearly 500,000 deaths in the United States in 2018 alone, where hypertension was either the contributing or primary case. Although this disease can be controlled effectively, several hindrances limit its adequate management.
The most common hindrances to the proper management of hypertension include the following, as noted by the American Medical Association:
- Inconsistent or poor blood pressure management techniques.
- Masked hypertension: a condition where patients’ blood pressure appears normal in a medical practitioner’s office but shows higher values at home.
- Clinical inertia: a phenomenon that usually occurs when a patient’s healthcare team fails to intensify or alter the treatment process when required or when their blood pressure shows fluctuations.
- Irresponsibility on the part of the healthcare team and failure to use evidence-based treatment protocols.
- Poor patient involvement in self-health management.
How can Remote Patient Monitoring help with Hypertension?
Remote patient monitoring can effectively curb all the barriers to effective treatment mentioned above. It can help patients devise a proper and consistent management and measurement technique, alter their behavior toward healthcare treatment, and ensure frequent data records instead of only when they measure their healthcare provider’s office.
RPM provides data-driven insights into a patient’s blood pressure trends and fluctuations over time, thereby helping the healthcare provider to make well-informed decisions influenced by trends. In addition, healthcare providers can also be alerted in real-time through the technology embedded in several RPM devices, ensuring that a doctor knows whenever a patient’s blood pressure moves out of the standard range. The alerted doctor can immediately contact the patient to root out the causes behind the abrupt change and chalk out the necessary steps to manage their uncontrolled BP.
Providers can also track and monitor the data collected over time to detect any changes in patterns of abnormalities in readings, including both high and low blood pressure. This can enable them to understand the effect of new medications or treatment plans and how they need to be changed to suit the condition of a patient better. Therefore, RPM solution enables healthcare providers to provide proactive healthcare to their patients.
SmartClinix offers a one-stop portal for all your practice needs, whether EMR, telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, medical billing, or others. You can also start your own online remote patient monitoring program, whether you practice in a hospital, clinic, or individually. This includes an online hypertension program, primary care program, and cardiology program. Head over to SmartClinix to get to know more!
Read also: How Remote Patient Monitoring Works
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