Remote care for oncology patients
A new collaboration sees the enhancement of remote healthcare services for high-risk cancer patients. Could this mark an important step for international patients in need of remote oncology care?
Healthcare-at-home solution provider Current Health is to have its remote patient monitoring (RPM) platform implemented in the Mount Sinai Health System (in New York), to help manage care for cancer patients for the first time.
Due to the Covid-19 restrictions, many treatments have been postponed or cancelled, and many healthcare officials have voiced concerns that people living with cancer (either knowingly or not) are not getting the care that they need at this time. As such, the collaboration between Current Health and Mount Sinai marks an important step towards addressing this problem.
The growth of at-home healthcare
Through the new RPM platform, cancer patients can be treated from the comfort of their home, rather than in a hospital setting, as those that are treated with chemotherapy are at increased risk for infection due to neutropenia in a hospital environment. At home, they are at their safest, hence the move towards at-home recovery for oncology patients through RPM solutions.
High-risk cancer patients are therefore being given Current Health’s proprietary wearable device, which continuously and passively collects vital sign data, which is then transmitted back to Mount Sinai care teams in real time. The device will alert physicians over the platform if a patient is in need of medical assistance, rather than relying on their patient to determine their medical needs.
“More and more, we’re seeing patient demand for more home-based care options. Mount Sinai is at the forefront of this trend, enabling oncology patients to recover at home under the watchful eye of their physicians. Their commitment to delivering best-in-class patient experiences and outcomes is a true model for forward-thinking providers,” said Christopher McCann, CEO and Co-Founder of Current Health.
Is remote oncology care for international patients on the cards?
Mount Sinai serves a wealth of patients, including those travelling internationally. While it’s not clear whether this new service caters towards international patients, it will no doubt be an important step towards enhancing the facility’s international patient care services through remote telemedical care.
Back in August, Hospitals & Healthcare covered the benefits of remote patient monitoring technologies for both international payers and providers. With Covid-19 effecting an uptake in remote healthcare services, it likely won’t be long before we see more of these announcements.