Telehealth services allow patients to work with healthcare professionals through computers and mobile devices. Both Mr. Kasich and Mr. Lane can benefit from telehealth services as they will receive care remotely. Mr. Kasich lives forty miles from the closest healthcare provider, which is why it is rather inconvenient and time-consuming for him to use traditional care. Telehealth nursing may enable Mr. Kasich to receive some guidance in procedures from a healthcare worker without living his home. However, while for Mr. Kasich, remote healthcare seems to be a necessity, for Mr. Lane, it is more a matter of comfort.
Both men can find it advantageous to receive information regarding medications, diet, and exercises through computer-related devices. However, they will receive different types of telehealth services, and their telemonitoring devices will transmit data regarding different health indicators to a remote telehealth nurse. One may also note that the two men will get individualized patient care at a smaller cost, compared to traditional medical care.
Home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM) is a type of consumer health informatics that can support home telemonitoring. Equipped with more sensors than usual blood pressure monitors, HBPM devices can be used for self-testing. They are considered an effective strategy for hypertension and heart failure management. This consumer health informatics tool can automatically transmit electronic data directly to healthcare professionals. This will help avoid issues with data quality that frequently arise when patients keep paper-based logs for monitoring blood pressure (Buis et al., 2017). Other features of this technology that may enhance the quality of telemonitoring include reminders and tailored patient education.
Consumer health informatics is a domain of health informatics whose primary objective is to minimize the gap between patients and resources available to healthcare providers. In particular, consumer health informatics facilitates the accessibility of health information to patients and adjusts medical information systems to meet the needs and preferences of customers (Buis et al., 2017). It is not only patients but also organizations and providers that can benefit from consumer health informatics in several ways. Tools of consumer informatics can serve as a personalized source of health information and provide for individualized monitoring of health.
One may assume that large data sets and advanced software will enable healthcare professionals to understand patients better, thus improving disease management and prevention. Consumer health informatics may help minimize the number of in-person visits and reduce the number of readmissions and negative implications of medical labor shortages. Apart from that, by extending physicians’ reach, this technology may also reduce admissions and allow healthcare professionals to serve a greater number of patients. It is likely that a constant stream of live health data will inform healthcare professionals in their decision making.
However, when thinking about the benefits of innovative technologies in healthcare, it is important to consider potential ethical issues related to telehealth and telenursing. For example, the redesign of existing processes in healthcare may isolate people who have limited or no access to computer-related devices and the Internet. The proliferation of telehealth services may only exacerbate such inequalities. Another ethical issue concerns the security and confidentiality of patients’ electronic health data that are threatened by the use of telemedicine. This, in turn, requires the elaboration of a set of ethical regulations and guidelines for healthcare workers that will receive, store, and transfer medical data.
Reference
Buis, L. R., Roberson, D. N., Kadri, R., Rockey, N. G., Plegue, M. A., Choe, H. M., & Richardson, C. R. (2017). Utilizing consumer health informatics to support management of hypertension by clinical pharmacists in primary care: Study protocol. JMIR Research Protocols, 6(10), e193.