Remote patient monitoring for chronic pain reduces ER visits
Teresa Sieck
Chronic pain is persistent pain that can last weeks, months, or even years, and affects one in five Americans (50 million), and costs an estimated $650 billion to treat each year.
Of the 50 million with chronic pain, 19.6 million struggle with pain that interferes with their daily lives and impacts both their mental health and quality of life. Those who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain are at risk of opioid use disorder, overdose, and death.
According to the Ochsner Journal, chronic pain impacts more than heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined and is recognized as a major public health problem that creates psychological and social problems that are challenging for patients and physicians.
Remote patient monitoring of chronic pain was introduced to help providers closely monitor patients at home to get a better understanding of their patient’s levels of pain, adherence to medication, and respond to health issues sooner to prevent risk of ER visits and hospitalizations.
“Healthcare providers need to remember that a patient’s home life is much different than what you’re experiencing when you see them in a practice or clinic. Often, it’s unknown. We help providers collect important data and offer a support system at home,” said Teresa Sieck, CEO, and founder of WebCareHealth.
WebCareHealth is working with Central States Pain Clinic, an independent medical group practice that offers treatment for a variety of pain conditions, to reduce the complexities of chronic pain treatment through remote patient monitoring.
According to Betsy Bolton, PA-C, managing chronic pain patients is challenging due to the multi-dimensional and subjective nature of pain and approaches to treatment. “WebCareHealth helps us watch for changes in patient patterns and intervene when needed to keep patients out of the ER.”
Patients report their physiologic measurements and level of pain on a daily basis by answering questions on the WebCareHealth mobile app, or by calling and speaking to a WebCareHealth nurse. WebCareHealth closely monitors patient data for abnormal changes and escalates the care team when there is a concern.
“Remote monitoring allows us to keep track of patients’ pain patterns on a long-term basis and see changes in real-time so we can be proactive instead of reactive after a patient ends up in the ER,” said Bolton.
WebCareHealth CEO and Founder, Teresa Sieck, is excited to be working with Central States Pain Clinic to support chronic pain management. “Chronic pain affects more than heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined. We’re giving patients the access to the care they need to conquer their pain and get their life back.”
(additional source: https://www.cdc.gov/opioids/providers/prescribing/guideline.html)
Schedule a demo to learn about WebCareHealth’s Chronic Pain solution.