Recent research suggests telemedicine may advance patients’ satisfaction with their postoperative supervision as well as their essence of life. Through telemedicine, a healthcare provider can utilize a computer, tablet or another electronic device to remotely assess their patients’ symptoms, diagnose illnesses or impairments, and designate treatments. The healthcare provider can also field their patients’ questions. The 30 participants in Mousa’s study were recuperating from vascular surgery. In each case, the surgeon cut in the patient’s groin to reach the arteries that needed rebuilding or rerouting. Whether the cuts healed without complexities was the study’s focus.
Sixteen patients obtained tablets via a telemedicine app developed by TeleMed 2020 Inc. called Enform that expedited communication with nurses administering their care. As a part of an in-home monitoring kit, patients also obtained thermometers, blood pressure cuffs, scales and devices to regulate blood oxygen saturation levels.
Every day, patients who had been emancipated from the hospital weighed themselves, measured their pulse and blood pressure, took their temperature, and ascertained their blood oxygen levels using the Enform app. They performed wellness, and symptom tracking quiz that included questions like “How is your pain today?” Each week they acknowledged satisfaction and emotional wellness questions alongside. These data, along with pictures of the surgical incision positions that patients captured with the app — were made accessible to the patients’ care team.
Care managers, in turn, logged in the telemedicine platform regularly to review the news these patients had proffered from their homes. Cares managers accepted notifications of irregularities, such as blood pressure increase and fevers. Based on the information they accumulated, the care managers intervened, acknowledged patients’ questions about symptoms or wound care, called in prescriptions, arranged appointments with physicians, and changed care programs based on meetings with the medical director.
While, the other 14 participants had standard-of-care treatment. They got no monitoring apparatus, tablet or telemedicine app. After 30 days, the researchers made some observations between the two groups. The patients in the telemedicine group scored considerably on measures of their physical function, mental health and role restrictions due to physical health problems. Besides, the vast majority of patients who used the app found it intuitive to use.
