HomMed Health Monitoring System FAQ's

What are the benefits of in-home monitoring services?

For the patient and family:

• Encourages patient self-management by reinforcing positive behavior and lifestyle changes.
• Gives concerned family members the peace of mind that a professional clinician is monitoring the patient on a daily basis and communicating important information to the physician.
• Allows patient and caregiver participation in the plan of care, producing better maintainable outcomes.

For the physician:

• Eliminates unnecessary and unscheduled visits.
• Breaks the cycle of emergency care and hospital re-admissions for patients with chronic illness such as CHF, diabetes, etc.
• Creates strong patient satisfaction and loyalty to the physician practice.
• Helps the physician be more proactive in patient care, allowing for adjustments to the treatment plan or medications.
• Complete objective, clinical patient data is available to the physician immediately with a simple request for the information.

For the home health agency:

• Improves communication between all members of the care team.
• Empowers nursing staff by providing trend-over-time data, ensuring continuity of care.

What clinical data can the home monitor collect and transmit?

Daily and PRN measurements can be made of heart rate, blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, weight, oxygen saturation, and temperature.  In addition, up to 51 subjective questions allow for a comprehensive assessment of patient status; questions appropriate for the particular patient are programmed to be asked each day.

Which patients should be considered for referral?

Recommended criteria include patients with:

• Recent hospitalization or ER visit for existing chronic conditions.
• Any condition requiring frequent monitoring or trending of vital signs to facilitate clinical management.
• Chronic care needs who can avoid admission to alternative living facilities if monitored at home.
• History of poor compliance with diet, medications, or self-monitoring of chronic conditions.

The following patient types are not recommended for in-home monitoring:

• Patients who are combative or have other behavioral problems that would limit compliance.
• Patients who are physically or cognitively unable to follow simple instructions and have no caregiver to assist them.
• Residence not conducive/safe for home monitoring.

How does monitoring affect follow-up office visits?

Prompt communication of abnormal parameters and routine trend reports allows the physician to detect subtle changes in clinical status before a patient's condition deteriorates.

This proactive approach to patient management allows the scheduling of more appropriate follow-up visits for the purpose of making incremental clinical modifications to the treatment plan.

What is the cost to my patients for home monitoring?

• Patients who are referred to Commonwealth Home Health or First Dominion Home Health for home care services and meet the eligiblility and selection criteria will be monitored at no cost.
• Patients not eligible or no longer requiring home health care have the option of being monitored for a nominal fee.  Studies show that both patients and concerned family members place considerable value on the peace of mind this service offers them.
• Private insurance may also cover the cost.