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News
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Telehealth Monitoring
Memorial Home Services offers telehealth monitoring, an automated device placed in
patients' homes to take vital signs,
remind them to take medication and answer simple questions about their condition.
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News: Hybrid Vehicles to Help Drive Growth for Memorial Home Services
Memorial Home Services Offers Telehealth Monitoring
August 5, 2008
Memorial Home Services is installing monitoring systems in the homes of patients with chronic diseases that will take their vital signs and transmit that information to a nurse who will review the data.
"This technology will greatly benefit patients with congestive heart failure, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other ailments by allowing healthcare professionals to monitor their vital signs daily rather than during scheduled home visits," Pat Jones, home health director at Memorial Home Services, said.
An affiliate of Memorial Health System, Memorial Home Services purchased 15 telehealth units.
Each unit includes a monitor, scale, blood pressure cuff and finger sensor. The monitors are hooked up through patients' phone lines. The monitor will talk patients through checking vital signs of heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen levels and weight. The entire process takes about three minutes and is transmitted securely over the phone line for a nurse in the office to review. "If the data indicates a need for intervention, the nurse will be able to take appropriate action," Jones said.
Daily monitoring allows nurses to identify changes in their patients' health status earlier, preventing visits to the emergency room or hospitalizations thereby improving patient outcomes, Jones said.
"The monitor can gather other important information from patients, such as, 'Are you experiencing more difficulty breathing today compared to a normal day?' or 'Do you feel more anxious or upset today?' " Jones said. "The questions are tailored to each patient's specific diagnosis."
Memorial Home Services received a grant from the Memorial Medical Center Foundation to fund the initial telehealth effort and to place monitors in patients' homes.
Memorial Home Services provides home nursing, hospice and medical equipment services across a 19-county region in central Illinois.
For more information, call (217) 788-4663.
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