I have been a nurse since 1976 .   I still have my RN license today although I have been out of Health Care since 2018.  I am very interested in the future of Healthcare for my family, friends and my community.

My Nephrologist offered me an opportunity in joining an at home remote monitoring program at my last visit.  He said it was an experimental program and currently he had about 10 of his patients on it.  I was intrigued and I agreed.

I agreed for 2 reasons.  The first reason was something that would likely improve patient care in the future. That idea excites me!

The second reason was a more selfish one.  I felt he was treating my increasing hypertension rather conservatively.  (Phone calls between appointments did not help.  His nurse told me,  he told her, my 140’s-150’s over 70’s-80’s were okay readings.)  I felt if he was actually seeing daily readings that he might act more quickly.

Guess what?  It worked!  He just increased my BP meds last week and my BP is improving.

The remote monitoring company provides devices which transmit your results to your doctor.  This may include BP monitor, weight scale, pulse oximeter (to evaluate oxygenation through your nailbed), thermometer, glucose meter, sleep and resting heart rate monitor and peak flow meter. (to evaluate how deep a breath you can take.) EKG monitoring, especially for those with pacemakers is also possible through other companies.  Your results are transmitted through cell phone towers, no WiFi required.  I was told by the nurses that you can also take these devices on vacation so I will be checking on how well that works next month.

The target patients for this service are chronically ill people.  It is covered 100% by Medicare and my Medicare supplement policy.

They also reward compliance in using these devices daily, by providing bingo cards monthly with potential prizes available.

  I just discovered  their app called “Evelyn” yesterday, that tracks your daily results.  That will make it easier for me since I have been tracking my results myself for the last 4 years (when I was diagnosed with stage 4 Chronic Kidney Disease.)  It is very helpful to look at your trends for diet, meds, weight,  fluid intake, pedal edema, BP ect. to fine tune your life style choices.

It did take me a while to adjust to this program.  Putting the BP cuff on my arm was a little problematic until I got used to it.  The phone calls from nurses if I had a weight change greater than a half a pound in 24 hours or a high BP were a little annoying.  They are just calling to be sure I feel alright (no shortness of breath, pain, dizziness ect.)  I even gave the company a special ringtone so I would know if they are calling. 

You need to charge your devices weekly.  Last week when I had my cat, Tiger, put to sleep, (see previous post) I forgot to charge them.  If the battery is low, the machines still do readings but do not transmit the results.  (I gained 1.1 pounds in 24 hours when I had a high sodium meal after Tiger died and got no phone call from my remote monitoring company.  I was puzzled but figured it out later that day.)  I set a weekly alarm on my phone to remind me.  Problem solved.

Remote monitoring at home makes the  future, look a little brighter, which is exciting for all of us!