We have seen the situation worsen in chronic diseases since the beginning of the pandemic and leads to what providers now call "health debt", which is the cumulative impact of the pandemic on health behavior. Many doctors have seen chronic diseases worsen. There are two reasons for this. One is to worry about chronic patients with COVID who are at high risk and are avoiding and delaying care. Many people delay or avoid medical care, and people with chronic diseases are more likely to stay away from hospitals or clinics. For patients with chronic diseases, their concerns have been amplified. They are at greater risk of COVID-19 complications and are working to ensure safety. However, when you have a chronic disease, you need to keep in touch with the provider to stay normal. It is reported that the additional living stress in the pandemic will worsen chronic diseases. Patients need more care, not less.
Another reason is that many doctors cannot use the correct remote patient monitoring tools to help prevent this situation, and do not provide services to patients who go to the clinic in person. Delaying care can have long-term consequences, and remote patient monitoring services can definitely help mitigate this impact.
The remote patient monitoring service has been using RPM devices such as pulse oximeter, spirometer, online thermometer and stethoscope to monitor, which is seen in the procedures of patients discharged after COVID-19. However, there are many device lacking of conditions that can provide adequate care at home.
Patients with diabetes have blood glucose meters, but people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation need equipment that can fully track them. At present, doctors can only monitor some of these patients. If the personal visits are reduced, it will cause impacts on high-risk patients.
With the help of remote patient monitoring services, we are really in the early stage of what we can do for patients with chronic diseases. We can promote remote patient monitoring services by viewing the current diagnostic devices for each situation, find sensors that can be integrated into wireless devices, and create clinical related continuous solutions. This is just the beginning. We have the opportunity to innovate when clinicians and patients are ready to adopt new solutions.
