GP Consortia Must Make Acute Care Cuts - But Telehealth Can Help

Pathfinder GP consortia have begun to close A&E departments and hospital services to ease secondary care budgets – and telehealth can help.

Consortia in London, Kent and Bassetlaw intend to shift investment from secondary to primary care – precisely what the HomePod does best.

It’s an iPad-like device patients can use to measure vital signs, take clinical questionnaires and then send results to a nurse – though they may be miles apart.

The ‘Pod reduces hospital admissions because carers can detect and treat issues before they become dangerous, studies suggest.

Clinical users can view a patients results from a web application, or receive email and text alerts if a patient has concerning results.

Trials saw a 90% reduction in hospital admissions and length of in-patient stays, and cut home visits from nurses and GPs by half.

A study in the US showed telehealth users had half the hospital costs of patients receiving traditional care, a cost saving of nearly £200,000.

Telehealth Solutions Executive Chairman Jeremy Cummin lamented, ‘the current financial climate hasn’t spared a single sector, even the NHS must make changes.

‘But with telehealth we can use this as an opportunity not just to reduce costs, but to improve patient care far beyond what it could be without this techonology.

‘In medicine we’ve consistently improved outcomes and enhanced care, whatever the financial pressures, we need to continue that trend: and telehealth is the way to do it.’

Posted on Wednesday, 09 February 2011 under Home Pod