NY Health System Strikes Partnership to Provide Remote Physical Exams

A new partnership between Rochester Regional Health and TytoCare will make the company's artificial intelligence-powered tools available to the health system's clinicians, enabling them to provide remote physical examinations to patients in the Western New York region. 

Rochester Regional Health is an integrated health system that operates in upstate New York. It includes a group of nine hospitals and primary and specialty practices, rehabilitation centers, and other facilities.

TytoCare is a company that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to provide virtual home examinations and telehealth visits.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a massive uptake in telehealth services, changing the perspective of many patients regarding how they prefer to receive care.

The traditional telehealth approach includes a combination of video and audio services, and TytoCare aims to enhance these through tools that assist in the delivery of remote physical examinations.

Per the new collaboration, Rochester Regional Health will use multiple tools and services provided by TytoCare, including TytoHome and TytoClinic, which are kits that provide consumers with various monitoring devices.

The TytoHome kit includes an exam camera, thermometer, stethoscope, tongue depressor adaptors, and more. These provide patients with tools to conduct physical examinations at home, performing total reviews of the heart, skin, ears, throat, abdomen, and lungs. Clinicians can review the exams remotely and connect with patients virtually.

The TytoClinic kit includes similar tools as TytoHome and can help turn any location into a remote telehealth clinic. Rochester Regional will use this kit in school-based and home-based healthcare settings for patients with congestive heart failure.

"The need is greater than ever for patients and families to have easy, convenient access to healthcare," said Bridgette Wiefling, MD, chief physician enterprise officer and executive vice president for Rochester Regional Health, in the press release. "That's why Rochester Regional Health reached out to its tech partners to identify an affordable, high-quality product that facilitates patient and family care in the home. TytoCare's technology is intuitive and easy to use for both patients and providers and seamlessly integrates with our existing platforms and protocols."

Recently, various collaborations have occurred that intend to enhance the quality and outreach of telehealth services, including one that involved TytoCare. MemorialCare in Fountain Valley, California, partnered with the company to enhance its telehealth services.

In addition, the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) partnered with Andor Health last month to enhance the sustainability of telehealth. Through the collaboration, MUSC allowed its provider network to access health IT services provided by Andor Health.

Another collaboration in April took place between Teladoc and Northwell Health, which intends to extend care outreach and enhance clinical teamwork. The relationship that Teladoc has with Microsoft is expected to assist Northwell Health in progressing its virtual care strategy.