Remote Patient Monitoring Program Effective in Treating COVID-19

To effectively monitor and treat COVID-19 patients during the pandemic, the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics developed a home monitoring program that helped keep a majority of patients out of the hospital, according to a new study.

Researchers analyzed 1,128 COVID-19 patients treated as part of the home monitoring program (HMP) between March 9, 2020, and June 30, 2020. Researchers identify high- and low-risk patients based on various demographics, and prioritize those who are older and had underlying health conditions.

Researchers examined the proportion of patients who were hospitalized after implementing the HMP.  

Based on comorbidities and age, 30.7 percent of this sample were high-risk patients. But only 6.2 percent needed hospitalization, and 1.2 percent needed to be admitted to the intensive care unit.

But hospitalization occurred more frequently among high-risk patients, the study shows.

The fact that more than 92 percent of patients did not need hospitalization led researchers with the conclude that the home monitoring program can help clinicians effectively identify and treat high-risk COVID-19 patients.

Researchers also found that patients required a median of three telemedicine visits prior to discharge from HMP. Further, patients with high-risk scores had more remote visits than those with low-risk scores.

There are several limitations to this study that researchers acknowledged. These include the fact that the program occurred at a single academic center, and that the mean age of the study participants was lower than the ages of patient populations in similar studies,.

But, researchers noted that benefits from the program included decreased exposure to COVID-19, increased convenience, and less need for personal protective equipment.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers have conducted various studies regarding remote COVID-19 patient monitoring.

In March 2020, Providence decided to take an immediate approach to remote patient monitoring (RPM) for COVID-19, leveraging the Xealth digital platform to deliver the Twisle care automation and RPM platform. This project assisted more than 700 COVID-19 patients through the use of smartphone apps, text and calls, while simultaneously increasing availability within hospitals.

As RPM and telehealth gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, coalitions and advocacy groups emerged to ensure continued access to these care modalities. In March 2021, Moving Health Home was formed, boasting prestigious health systems and companies like Intermountain Healthcare and Amazon care among its membership.

"The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the untapped potential of home-based clinical care and the opportunity for a more robust set of services ranging from primary care to hospital-level treatment," the group said in a press release.