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  • How Telemedicine Solutions Impact the Healthcare Industry

    How Telemedicine Solutions Impact the Healthcare Industry

    The pandemic, with its need for isolation, gave a major boost to the development of new ways to diagnose or treat, this was the impetus for the development of telemedicine software development services. Online medicine, which was shunned not so long ago, has become ubiquitous and, moreover, in-demand among customers. But still, many are wary of this option of interacting with a doctor. Let’s figure out what it is, how it works, and how telemedicine solutions can impact healthcare institutions and patients.

    What is telehealth software?

    IT technology in healthcare is not just the use of gadgets and other devices. This is a whole complex of both software and hardware that is used to store, distribute and analyze health data.

    Traditional clinical services, patient monitoring, and record-keeping have now been transformed and simplified with the advent and spread of telemedicine. This also includes remote training of medical personnel. The use of telemedicine software has simplified and popularized video consultations, digital imaging, remote medical diagnosis, and more.

    And if we are talking about software for telemedicine, then we must understand what types of it are:

    Real-time telemedicine communication software

    The software and the scenario of its use are most comparable to a real visit to the doctor. Both the doctor and the patient can discuss issues of interest remotely. This gives doctors the opportunity to assess the patient’s condition and carry out treatment remotely. And for the patient, this option of telemedicine makes it possible to contact a remote specialist or institution for consultation.

    Telemedicine platforms for data storage and transfer

    This is a step towards transformation in the exchange of information. It is mainly used in the exchange of digital photos and videos for diagnostic purposes, or clinical data between patients and the clinic, or between doctors for additional consultations.

    Remote patient monitoring

    The target application is home telemedicine. This allows patients to be under constant supervision. It consists of specialized software and equipment that is installed at patients’ homes. This complex also includes monitoring the vital signs of patients and also provides doctors with frequent updates on the well-being of patients.

    Integration of telemedicine software

    This software is aimed at integration with existing medical systems. These are comprehensive solutions that are aimed at the complete synchronization of all patient credentials and their treatment histories. We can say that this is the way to centralize data.

    Integration with Pharmaceuticals

    Patients can access many of the professional services given by pharmacies and receive guidance on pharmaceutical therapy management remotely by using telemedicine software.

    Benefits of using telemedicine solutions

    All of the methods for incorporating software in medicine described above are applicable at all levels of care. Consider some easy instances.

    Attempts to get treatment from a doctor in another city or to make suggestions to a patient who lives in another city have always existed. Doctors have sent letters and called patients. However, telemedicine truly took off in the country when the Internet became available in practically every home. It’s a simple and rapid way to communicate, allowing the doctor to provide as much information as possible from a distance.

    When a person knows what telemedicine is, he or she can get help in situations where a visit to the doctor is impossible or undesirable. For example:

    ●  The trip to the hospital is long and difficult (the patient has a fever, something hurts a lot, there is a lot of weakness), and the wait for the doctor on duty is long;

    ●  The problem seems non-hazardous or irrelevant, and the person is not ready to spend the whole working day for it, but wants to get confirmation from the doctor that there is nothing to worry about;

    ●  Hospitals are overloaded because of an emergency or natural disaster, so it is impossible to get help there for a minor illness or a chronic problem;

    ●  Because of the quarantine, it is undesirable to go out and even more so to communicate with doctors through whom many sick people pass;

    ●  The illness suddenly appeared suddenly while on a business trip or during a trip to another country where there is no possibility to get qualified help or there is no possibility to invite an experienced interpreter who could explain all the details;

    By contacting a doctor online, a person avoids having to sit in lines, spend time on travel and money on time off work in order to get to an appointment on time.

    Custom development of telemedicine software

    When it comes to developing software for the telemedicine industry, the benefits provided by specialized and even custom applications include:

    ●  More convenient and cheap patient care: real-time consultations, photo-based consultations, including staging solutions, and mobile healthcare accessible.

    ●  Telemedicine solutions help make processes more economical, but at the same time more efficient. Thanks to comprehensive solutions, it is much easier for the patient to see a doctor online, and because of this, transport costs and non-urgent visits to clinics are reduced.

    ●  The storage of medical data is also undergoing changes. Telemedicine solutions allow you to handle huge amounts of data with complete security and precise control.

    ●  Brings automation to medical processes. This aspect has a positive effect on the time spent by doctors and on administrative operations.

    But also, custom software may provide some problems too. We at Empeek regularly face the following challenges associated with developing telemedicine applications:

    ●  Licensing and compliance with laws make development difficult.

    ●  Difficulties in building a connection with the server part, since all information exchange must be centralized.

    ●  The provision of platforms should be at the highest level. Telemedicine involves a lot of personal data of users, their medical history and other information that needs to be protected. And besides, you still need to ensure the security of payments.

    ●  Creation of high-quality UI / UX to provide a single space for all parties of communication.

    The value of telemedicine software development services is to provide you with a solution based on in-depth market analysis and tailored to your individual needs.

  • How Telemedicine is Changing Nursing Homes

    As we are all aware, nursing homes suffered a great deal during the height of the pandemic, and even long after many things were getting back to normal, nursing homes still lacked the staff they needed to fully meet the medical needs of their patients. In fact, 10% of patients who enter a nursing facility for post-acute care never see a physician during their stay. Sadly, this statistic leads to poor medical outcomes and higher re-hospitalization rates. 

    28% of patients who do not see a physician in the nursing home will be re-hospitalized and 14% will die within 30 days of being admitted. However, if a patient does have access to a physician, those percentages are cut in half. 

    Telemedicine is Changing Nursing Homes

    The best thing that nursing homes can do right now is to employ on-site APRNs and incorporate telemedicine into their daily operations. 

    According to one study, the presence of an on-site APRN can reduce hospitalizations by 48% and can lower costs by 40%. In fact, if every nursing home in the US employed an APRN, Medicare costs could be cut by nearly 2.8 billion dollars per year. 

    One of the ways that APRNs benefit patients, staff, and budget is their ability to recognize early signs of infection and help other nursing staff do the same. Acute conditions like pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and severe dehydration can all be treated in the nursing home if problems are detected early enough. Flare-ups of chronic conditions such as congestive heart failure, uncontrolled diabetes, and COPD and asthma are also conditions that don’t require hospitalization with early detection. 

    Having a combination of on-site APRNs as well as incorporating telemedicine can help put any nursing home facility at the top of their game inpatient care. 

    The current average wait time for a patient to see a doctor after admission is 3.2 days but increases to 8.1 days for rural facilities. This means that the median stay for patients is just 11 days before they are either re-hospitalized or death occurs. With telemedicine, all this can change. Telemedicine means that each nursing home has access to physicians they need. In large facilities, the nursing staff is augmented to make care available round-the-clock, and rural facilities that cannot employ on-site clinical staff can now have access to the physicians they need. 

    With APRNs and physicians working together through telemedicine, 83% of medical issues can be treated in the nursing home and hospitalizations due to acute encounters can be reduced by 17%. The most common diagnoses are things such as bleeding, pain, pneumonia, chest pain, seizures, and hypotension. Overall hospital readmissions can also be reduced by up to 70%. 

    Telemedicine has helped the medical community keep moving forward and treating patients without missing a beat through the whole pandemic. Telemedicine is changing nursing homes for the better. It is vitally important to our most vulnerable population that that same medical advancement be available and embraced by nursing homes across the country.

    Why Nursing Homes Need Telemedicine
    Via     TapestryHealth.com

  • Telemedicine: the Future of Healthcare

    Telehealth and telemedicine are the future of healthcare.  Telehealthcare has grown rapidly in the past few decades.  Even though it is less than a century old, it is maturing at an unbelievable speed.  Starting in the 1920s, radio communications were used to give medical advice to ship clinicians.  By the 1980s, telehealth was offered to countries outside of the United States.  Today, even veterinarians have begun offering telehealth services. 

    Not only has telehealth made large strides in the past decades, but the past year has also seen major increases in popularity.  In 2019, more than 75% of U.S.-based hospitals used video to connect with their patients.  COVID-19 prompted many patients to try telehealth for the first time.  Currently, 61% of Americans have now had at least one telehealth appointment; this is a 3x increase from March 2020.  In the first quarter of 2020 alone, there were over 1,600,000 telehealth visits, and almost 70% of patients managed their concerns regarding the pandemic with telehealth guidance. 

    Telemedicine and telehealth provide remote and non-remote clinical services.  Telemedicine is used to diagnose conditions, offer mental health services, screen symptoms, deliver specialist consultations, and support nursing home staff.  Telehealth is much broader, including chronic condition support, physical and occupational services, fulfilling medications, and facilitating administrative meetings, provider training, and continuing education. 

    Telehealth is innovating solutions, providing holistic healthcare in cardiology, pulmonology, and endocrinology.  28% of consumers use different technologies to moderate their health.  Remote clinical tools such as blood pressure monitors, anticoagulation testing, and ECG devices are just a few of these tools.  Apps and phone gadgets, wearable devices, and mail-in labs are all new technologies that have innovated solutions for telehealthcare.  Patients can have diagnostic tools and mental health services through apps.  Wearables allow patients to constantly monitor their health, and mail-in labs can give consumers information on their allergies, genetics, and food sensitivities. 

    Even through opposing barriers, telehealth has continued to thrive.  66% of adults were concerned about the use of private medical information, but consumers are growing more and more comfortable with their private records in the cloud.  Over 40% of patients have limited access to the internet, but this is currently being solved with federal broadband initiatives.  In addition, licensing issues prevented doctors from seeing patients across state lines, but recent legislation is allowing telehealth practitioners to do so. 

    The benefits of telehealth are evident.  82% of Americans say telehealth makes it easier to get the care they need.  It is convenient, saves on costs, and is more comfortable.  There is no need to take time off work to commute to the doctor’s office.  31% of patients say their healthcare costs decreased when using telehealth, with a savings estimate of anywhere between 17-75%.  In addition, many feel less anxiety and fear when seeing a doctor remotely.  Telehealth helps those in need by implementing programs that serve high-risk and rural populations.  They have expanded access to acute care; 59% of Medicare patients have access to a laptop, allowing them to receive the care they need.  Step into the future of medicine with telehealth. 

    The Booming Business of Telemedicine
  • T-Mobile and Zyter Partner on Telehealth

    T-Mobile and Zyter Partner on Telehealth

    T-Mobile has announced it is partnering with Zyter to provide telehealth options.

    Telehealth and telemedicine are growing in popularity as a result of the pandemic. As regions were in quarantine and lockdown, many turned to telehealth for their healthcare. Many viewed telehealth as a safer alternative than in-person doctor’s visits for non-critical medical needs.

    Unfortunately, successful deployment and use of telehealth programs requires quality internet access, specifically internet that allows videoconferencing. To help address this, T-Mobile has partnered with Zyter, a leading provider of software as a service (SaaS) digital health products.

    “We believe that every American has the right to quality healthcare that is safe and secure,” said Mike Katz, EVP, T-Mobile. “By partnering with Zyter, we can outfit healthcare organizations of all sizes with solutions that reach more people and enable faster and more reliable virtual care through familiar devices like smartphones and tablets.”

    The two companies will work together to help healthcare companies care for their patients remotely, using 4G LTE and 5G.

    “This is a significant agreement for Zyter as it enables us to leverage the vast resources and footprint of T-Mobile to make our digital health solutions more accessible to more patients,” said Sanjay Govil, founder and CEO of Zyter, Inc. “By working together, we can help organizations improve patient satisfaction while maintaining care quality and lowering costs.”

  • Dexcom CEO: COVID Has Really Validated Our Technology

    Dexcom CEO: COVID Has Really Validated Our Technology

    “COVID, while it’s hard and it’s been difficult, has really validated the importance of our technology,” says Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer. “What we’ve learned most interesting here is the effect of our device on telemedicine. Where patients can’t go to the clinic, because our device goes to the phone and into the cloud, they can have a session with their physician right at home because the doctor has the information right in front of them.”

    Kevin Sayer, CEO of the high flying continuous glucose monitoring company Dexcom, discusses how COVID as validated their technology:

    The Quick and Dirty of Dexcom Technology 

    Here’s the quick and dirty on how our device works. It is a small sensor, a small wire about the width of a human hair is inserted just under your skin. That’s inserted with the needle and the needle’s retracted very quickly. It’s attached to a base and that base remains on your skin. Then a transmitter is placed in there. That transmitter takes an electrochemical signal from that sensor and turns it into an estimated glucose value and then sends that value directly to a phone. The thing that is so fascinating about this company and this technology is we have every engineer of every kind to develop this. This includes electrical engineers, software engineers, mechanical engineers, everywhere across the board to give this technology to patients. 

    Then what happens with that glucose value when it goes to the phone, a patient can look at their phone and see where their blood sugar levels are, how fast they’re trending up or how fast they’re trending down. They will get alerts or alarms. On top of that, they can connect with others who might be concerned about their condition and other people can follow them. 

    The current device is a little bigger than a quarter on your skin. It’s not very big. Our device has a 10 day life so you put it on one side for 10 days, you take it off and then put another one on 10 days after that so you don’t have it all the time. You can also bathe or shower with the device. There are amazing stories of athletes who have run marathons with it on. One athlete who spoke to our company did seven marathons on seven continents in seven days wearing his Dexcom. Things of that nature happen all the time.

    COVID Has Really Validated Our Technology

    Access through the insurance companies is very widespread now. We’re covered by almost every major plan. We have Medicare coverage for Medicare patients and we’re covered in most of the Medicaid environment as well. With respect to the COVID environment, there has been an increased uptake as you can see by our financial results. I think what we’ve learned most interesting here is the effect of our device on telemedicine. Where patients can’t go to the clinic, because our device goes to the phone and into the cloud, they can have a session with their physician right at home because the doctor has the information right in front of them. 

    Add to that, we got an emergency exemption from the FDA to where our product can be used in the hospitals. Diabetes and COVID are very much comorbidities. Patients in the hospitals that have used the technology have seen significant decreases on the health care professionals. The PPE time they have to spend with the patients, better glucose outcomes, and they get to leave the hospital much faster. So COVID, while it’s hard and it’s been difficult, has really validated the importance of our technology.

    Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer: COVID Has Really Validated Our Technology