Chronic disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Do your triage nurses have the best tools for helping your patients manage their symptoms over the phone? Many medical call centers find it difficult to address the needs of chronic disease patients in a timely manner, which can lead to negative health outcomes before providers can intervene. For this reason, remote patient monitoring (RPM) is one of the best options you can implement to make it easier for your nurse team. Let’s explore what’s involved with RPM, and how remote patient monitoring solutions can benefit patient care.
What Is Remote Patient Monitoring?
RPM involves the use of wearable sensors that collect medical and health data from individuals, regardless of their location. This data is then transmitted back to providers for review. Because monitoring is continuous, providers are given a holistic understanding of patients’ chronic conditions, prompting stronger diagnoses and treatment. RPM solutions also promote early health interventions because they’re able to detect warning signs of potential complications before patients experience pain or show visible signs.
Devices commonly used in RPM include sensors that measure blood pressure, glucose levels, pulse, and weight. By tracking health in real time, RPM can go a long way to prevent chronic complications and hospital readmissions.
The Growing Importance of RPM in Healthcare
For the reasons outlined above, more practices are getting on the RPM bandwagon, especially in conjunction with telehealth services. Patients who actively participate in their care through RPM solutions are more likely to adhere to prescribed treatments, leading to improved long-term health outcomes.
Benefits of RPM for Nurse Call Centers
Integrating RPM into nurse call centers can be quite advantageous. One of the most significant benefits is enhanced patient engagement, because RPM encourages patients to take active roles in managing their own health. Regular monitoring and RPM device feedback can educate them on their conditions and prompt them to stick with their treatment plans and lifestyle changes.
RPM also makes it easier for nurses to prioritize patient needs for improved care coordination. As previously mentioned, real-time data can give a better understanding of patient health and whether conditions are about to worsen. This allows nurses to triage each patients’ needs and make sure they get the appropriate care in the appropriate windows of time.
Practices also experience greater operational efficiency from implementing RPM, simply because nurses can use this technology to manage a larger patient population. Its automation helps reduce the administrative burden on medical staff, and also frees up resources at emergency departments and doctors’ offices.
RPM encourages data-driven decision-making. Access to current vitals gives healthcare providers greater insight into the chronic diseases that their patients are managing, which translates to more personalized care plans and treatment adjustments.
Finally, Medicare and other insurers will reimburse you for RPM, which can offer an additional revenue source for your practice. You can check out the appropriate CPT codes for RPM here.
Implementing RPM in Nurse Call Centers
Successfully integrating RPM into nurse call centers involves several key steps.
First, it’s important to know what programs are the most effective. Healthcare providers must choose reliable and user-friendly devices that cater to the specific needs of their patient population.
Second, you’ll want to confirm that the health data recorded by these devices can integrate well with your existing software and workflows. Otherwise, key data points could be lost or duplicated. You’ll also want to verify that the RPM solution meets compliance with HIPAA and cybersecurity standards for protecting transmitted health data.
Third, make sure that your staff are sufficiently trained on how to use the RPM solution that you chose. Your call center nurses must be equipped with the necessary skills to operate RPM technology and interpret the patient data they record. Training programs should focus on educating healthcare professionals about how to recognize trends in that data, as well as how and when to respond to patients to address them. Note: This training should be ongoing to address changes in the market.
Fourth, you’ll want to have a system in place for educating your patients on how to apply and maintain their devices. This ensures that sensors remain accurate in the data that they collect. Providing instructional resources and ongoing support can also ensure compliance.
Finally, collaboration with healthcare providers enhances the effectiveness of RPM. Nurse triage call centers must maintain open communication channels with physicians and other healthcare professionals to ensure a coordinated approach to patient care. When patients show warning signs of worsening health, nurses need to know who to contact and how — using direct calls, secure text, and other resources — so that early interventions are successful.
Can We Discuss a Program?
By embracing remote patient monitoring solutions, nurse call centers can play a pivotal role in improved health outcomes and operational excellence. If you’d like your practice to experience the same benefits, we want to hear from you!
Contact us today to discuss a customized RPM program.
About TriageLogic
TriageLogic is a URAC-accredited, physician-led provider of top-quality nurse telehealth technology, remote patient monitoring, and medical call center solutions. Founded in 2006, the TriageLogic Group now serves more than 22,000 physicians and covers over 42 million lives nationwide.
