Dubbed an e-nurse, the disease management system is assigned to each congestive heart failure patient and attached to a regular push-button phone in their homes. Every day patients use the system to monitor their vital signs and transmit the data through the phone line to Montefiore, where it is analyzed by the home health nursing staff.
An electronic scale measures changes in weight, a key indicator of worsening heart failure; a peak flow meter checks lung capacity, an indicator of worsening asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; and a glucometer measures blood sugar levels which are key to managing diabetes. Blood pressure levels are monitored for hypertension and a pulse oximeter reads oxygen levels in the blood, key information to determine interventions needed for patients with asthma and COPD.
If anything is amiss with changes in their weight, blood pressure, pulmonary function, blood sugar rate or heart rate, one of our doctors or nurses contacts the patient and determines any necessary medical interventions, said Dr Sandra Selikson, medical director of the Home Health Agency. We can repeat taking vital signs electronically any time of the day and monitor disease processes more closely so we can treat problems early, before they become more serious and require hospitalization.
Goodwin also points out that the disease management system is not for everyone. She says a patient must be fifty years or older, have a primary diagnosis of congestive heart failure, have a touch-tone telephone and be able to stand on the system’s scale independently.
