1. NEW Seminal Studies Show Value of Telehealth and
Remote Care Technology In the ACO PCMH Models by Jim
Bloedau
By Jim Bloedau of Information Advantage Group
November, 2012
A couple of studies that may be seminal in their long term
influence on healthcare and patient well being showed how remote
care technology supports people who live independently, and how
they can be more in control of their own health and care.
• Central Indiana Beacon Community's pilot program to
study 30 day readmissions versus a control group showed
how nurse videoconferencing with congestive heart failure
(CHF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
patients at least 10 times in a month or daily to assist in their collecting vital signs showed a 75%
drop in readmission rates.
• In one of the most comprehensive studies yet of telehealth’s effect on the care of patients with
diabetes, coronary heart disease or COPD, U.K. Department of Health said its study was the first
of its kind and one of the most complex and it has ever undertaken. The preliminary findings
showed: remote care technology effected reductions of: emergency room visits 15%; emergency
admissions 20%; elective admissions 14%; bed days 14%; and most strikingly mortality rates by
45%. The study took two years and covered 6,000 chronically-ill patients at 238 healthcare
practices across three counties in the UK.
How big is this remote care potential? Frost & Sullivan recently identified home health care and
disease management monitoring as leading the top 20 telemedicine markets in terms of size and
most impact. Last March BCC Research predicted the global telehospital/clinic market would grow to
$17.6 and telehome segment to $9.7 billion by 2016 - with at least most of this typically coming
from the U.S.
For vendors who are not in the remote care market yet, how do you plan on leveraging this trend to
create any pull through for your products?