\u201cI could never have imagined that the monitoring system I had developed for patients with chronic heart disease would one day play a role in the war against a global pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jos\u00e9\u00a0Paulo Carvalho, Founding Partner of Portuguese telehealth company Hope Care, explains how technology he has been developing for more than six years \u2013 HCAlert \u2013 is now helping hospitals remotely monitor and care for vulnerable patients in their fight against the pandemic.<\/p>\n
The idea for the technology began in 2014 when, encouraged by the Portuguese government\u2019s drive to develop technical solutions that would allow doctors to treat patients remotely, Jos\u00e9 met Doctor Lu\u00eds Oliveira from Cova da Beira Hospital, which serves the municipalities of Covilh\u00e3, Fund\u00e3o, Belmonte and Penamacor.<\/p>\n
As Dr Lu\u00eds explains: \u201cWe began working with Hope Care on an innovative new system that would allow us to monitor the health of patients with chronic heart failure remotely, reducing the need for them to come to hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Portugal, like most developed countries, chronic heart failure is the most frequent cause of hospital admissions in people over the age of 65. These have increased by more than a third in the last decade.<\/p>\n
The patient prognosis is poor. There\u2019s a 12.5% risk of death during a hospitalisation, with a high chance of acute events occurring undetected after patients are sent home. Risk of death is 17% in the first year.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where Hope Care\u2019s Azure-powered HCAlert patient monitoring system, tailored to meet the needs of Dr Lu\u00eds\u2019 patients, has proved to be a lifesaver.<\/p>\n
Patients use simple Bluetooth-connected devices to share daily measurements \u2013 such as their temperature, weight and blood pressure. The data is then submitted via a smartphone to Hope Care\u2019s centralised system and stored securely in the cloud.<\/p>\n
The hospital is then informed if the data shows a patient\u2019s condition has transgressed set parameters, allowing doctors to act accordingly. Medical staff are also better able to detect early signs of decompensation \u2013 and take action to prevent a patient experiencing an acute event, by adjusting their medication or providing advice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a simple and relatively inexpensive system,\u201d adds Dr Lu\u00eds.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe doctors train the patients and their carers how to use the device and it\u2019s very straightforward so that patients are easily able to use it after just one session,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt helps the patient to feel very active in their own care \u2013 we see greater adherence to prescribed medication treatments and to a healthy lifestyle. It also provides a constant link and source of communication between the patient and the department, which in turn helps them feel safe and more comfortable.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n