In Lake City, Betsy Graham makes her way toward her kitchen table. Resting on the table is her blood pressure cuff. Every morning, she straps it around her arm and takes a reading. This has become a daily routine for her after her AFib diagnosis.
“I measure daily, first thing in the morning. And then, if the blood pressure is not satisfactory, I'll check it two or three more times. Daily,” said Betsy.
For patients like Betsy, Remote Patient Monitoring allows the doctor to catch signs and symptoms of health complications before they worsen—warnings that her doctor at Lake City Family Medicine would otherwise only be able to catch if Mrs. Graham were to come in for tests.
“Remote patient monitoring is a way for physicians to monitor the patient outside of the physician's office. What always bothered me in medical school was that we make life-changing decisions based on a visit every three to four months,” said Dr. Brown, Betsy's primary physician at Lake City Family Medicine.
With the help of Kamryn Williams, a licensed practical nurse with Palmetto Care Connections, Dr. Brown, can keep track of many of his clinic patients through PCC's Remote Patient Monitoring platform.
“It's a dashboard that has each of the patients we are monitoring. When they monitor their vital signs at home, if it's an abnormal reading that's out of the provider-established parameters, it sends me a notification,” said Kamryn.
After receiving this notification, Kamryn can get in touch with the patient to see if there is anything immediately wrong. She is also able to pass it on to the provider, who can read the patient's tests and any notes from Kamryn's call to the patient to make any adjustments to their treatment plan.
For patients like Betsy, this form of care keeps her mind at ease, knowing that, in the months between in-person visits, her doctor can track and catch any signs that complications may arise.
“It makes me feel good. Makes me feel like medical professional's care for us. So, I would absolutely encourage others to be a part of the program,” remarked Betsy.
