AMC Health, a leading provider of end-to-end telehealth solutions and Humana Inc., one of the nation’s leading health and well-being companies have announced they will partner on a telehealth pilot to improve congestive heart failure (CHF) outcomes.
Over the course of the nine-month Humana Cares Heart Failure Remote Monitoring Program, AMC Health will provide in-home monitoring solutions and services to help 450 Humana Medicare Advantage members in Ohio suffering from CHF to better manage their conditions and adhere to their care plans. The remote patient monitoring solutions include Bluetooth-enabled scales and blood pressure monitors, which will be used in conjunction with a cellular modem, and Interactive Voice Response technology.
CHF affects approximately 5.7 million people in the United States, contributing to more than 280,000 deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A study published earlier this year in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that 24.8 percent of Medicare patients admitted for heart failure were readmitted within 30 days after discharge. Poor care transitions, exercise activity, diet and adherence to treatment plan are the leading causes of those readmissions, diminishing the quality of life and life expectancy for people with CHF.
Under the agreement, AMC Health will deliver the technology, logistics, and clinical support services (specifically for CHF) for the Remote Monitoring Program and capture symptom and biometric information such as daily blood pressure, pulse and body weight.
Humana Cares / Senior Bridge care managers will work in conjunction with AMC Health nurses to analyze the information in near real time against nationally accepted CHF standards of care. If a member’s weight or blood pressure is outside normal parameters, AMC Health will assess symptom and behavior information via an automated interactive voice response telephone process. Nurses will provide coaching and education and arrange for an appointment with the individual’s physician if further intervention is needed.
“We’re confident that by supplementing the existing efforts of our care managers with AMC Health’s remote patient monitoring solutions, we’ll be successful in influencing our members to modify unhealthy behaviors and comply with treatment regimens, which will in turn improve their quality of life,” said Humana Cares / SeniorBridge President Eric C. Rackow, M.D.
