Post Surgical Patients Benefit from a Home-Based Recovery
Researchers at McMaster University and the Population Health Research Institute, two world-renowned institutions in Hamilton, Ontario, found that remote patient monitoring is effective in helping patients recover from non-elective surgery from the comfort of their home. The results of the study found that few patients using RPM systems reported high levels of pain, indicating they were recovering faster with the addition of RPM technology.
The patients using remote automated monitoring were given medical devices and telehealth tablets. Patients in the study were taught how to take blood pressure, oxygen saturation, temperature, body weight, heart rate, and respiratory rate. Further, they filled out daily surveys and uploaded photographs of their wounds for nurses and doctors to assess.
Vytrac’s technology mirrors much of the RPM technology used in the study, and more. For patients with bluetooth capabilities, VyTrac has an FDA approved facial recognition feature that displays relevant vitals. For patients that are device agnostic or do not have access to a cellular device, VyTrac sends medical devices to patients and explains how to best use that device to improve care. Vitals are assessed daily, and the VyTrac’s software has a chat option and a questionnaire that allows physicians to better understand the patient’s needs and improve the user experience.
The study also established the efficacy of remote patient monitoring over in-patient post-operative appointments due to the increase in the detection and correction of medication errors. VyTrac’s technology, like the RAM technology used in the Canadian study, is more likely to catch errors. All of the data is discrete, objective, and consistent, allowing physicians and other health care providers a clear picture of the state of their patient. Although the study revealed that more participants in the RPM group had a drug error, it also showed that more participants had a drug error correction as well. Most errors were a result of patients not understanding the medication they were meant to take and not understanding physician instructions. VyTrac’s protocol attempts to proactively avoid errors. Every day after surgery, patients can communicate with healthcare professionals with pictures and videos, and there are alarms that will trigger a telehealth response if necessary.
The study was conducted as a result of COVID-19 restricting patients from remaining in the hospital any longer than absolutely necessary. Nonetheless, the positive findings of the study only support the case for remote patient monitoring systems such as VyTrac to become more integrated in our healthcare systems.
Publication Link: McGillion, M. H., Parlow, J., Borges, F. K., Marcucci, M., Jacka, M., Adili, A., Lalu, M. M., Ouellette, C., Bird, M., Ofori, S., Roshanov, P. S., Patel, A., Yang, H., O’Leary, S., Tandon, V., Hamilton, G. M., Mrkobrada, M., Conen, D., Harvey, V., … Devereaux, P. J. (2021, September 30). Post-discharge after surgery virtual care with Remote Automated monitoring-1 (PVC-ram-1) technology versus Standard Care: Randomised Controlled Trial. The BMJ. Retrieved October 11, 2021, from https://www.bmj.com/content/374/bmj.n2209.