Telehealth aids heart failure patients

A European study has shown that patients with heart failure who used an interactive telehealth system with motivational support tools at home spent 73% fewer days in hospital.

The results of the Catalan Remote Management Evaluation study (CARME), which was managed by the Spanish Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol Heart Failure Clinic over a 12 month period, are the first to demonstrate how the impact of a telehealth system combing patient monitoring and motivational educational support tools can benefit patients that are chronically ill.

The study randomly assigned 92 patients to two groups, in the first the patients received care plan driven educational videos, motivational messages and questionnaires, the second received the same information but also monitored their blood pressure, weight and pulse.

The study used Philip’s Motiva systems to connect patients with their providers via their television and broadband connection. The study then compared the clinical outcomes 12 months prior to enrolment with the results obtained during the study.

The research shows that there was a 68% decrease in heart failure related hospitalisation and a 73% reduction of days spent in hospital from 646 days to 168 days.

It also reveals that patients showed a significant improvement in their perception of quality of life, at the beginning of the study; more than half of the patients (56%) said that their quality of life was medium or low, which decreased to 22% by the end.

More than three quarters of patients said that they wanted to keep the telehealth system in addition to their regular care.

Dr Josep Lupon, head of the heart failure unit and main researcher of the study, said: “The concept of providing educational support to heart failure patients via their television has significantly contributed to empowering them.

“Equally important, the CARME study has shown that disseminating patient and disease specific information via the TV through Philips Motiva, helps family members to gain a better understanding of how to effectively support their loved ones in coping with their disease. This appears to have a very strong impact on outcomes.”

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Philips Healthcare