December 15, 2004
Genesis VNA To Add Home Health Monitors
Davenport, IA - More patients using the services of the Genesis Visiting Nurse Association will soon be able to receive a checkup every day without seeing a nurse or leaving their home.
Through the joint efforts of the Genesis Visiting Nurse Foundation and Clinton County Visiting Nursing Foundation, 30 additional telehealth monitors will soon be available to patients. The foundations raised $160,000 toward the purchase of additional monitors to allow for daily monitoring of vital signs of home care patients in the 11-county, bi-state region.
"We're excited that the foundations quickly recognized additional patient need and the benefits this type of technology provides," said Denise Schrader, R.N., Director of Community and Provider Relations for Genesis Visiting Nurse Association. "When we received our first monitors in October, we could see we were going to run out of monitors. We had more patient need than we had monitors.
"We have a daily census of more than 1,500 patients and would love to have 400 monitors some day. Through the foundation efforts, we'll be able to expand to more patients who can benefit from the monitors."
The monitors are available to patients with specific health histories. Schrader said patients with congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes and hypertension can benefit greatly from the daily monitoring available using telehealth monitors. Patients who have made frequent visits to emergency rooms or have recently been hospitalized are also considered for the home monitors.
The ease of operation is confirmed by a high use rate. Of the patients with access to the monitors, 97 percent use them every day, Schrader said.
The monitors can measure heart rate, oxygen saturation, temperature, blood pressure and weight. Peripheral devices available allow patients with a history of diabetes to measure blood sugar levels. Patients with asthma or pulmonary disease can monitor their breathing with a different attachment.
Patients can also be directed through yes/no questions to assist VNA in evaluating the patient's health. If the patient reports problems or the monitor identifies vital sign changes, VNA can intervene more quickly, Schrader said.
