Telehealth has the ability to significantly reduce both length of stay and risk of mortality among intensive care unit patients, according to a large-scale study published in CHEST Journal.
Researchers studied the effect of a remote patient monitoring program on almost 120,000 patients across 56 ICUs in 32 hospitals and 19 health systems over a five-year period.
Results showed that when compared with a control group receiving usual ICU care, patients receiving care in an ICU equipped with telehealth were discharged from the ICU 20 percent more quickly and from the hospital 15 percent more quickly. These patients also saw a 26 percent lower overall mortality rate.
These improvements in care lead directly to cost savings for the hospital, assert the researchers. "These results point to a significant opportunity to better manage and treat our critical patients in this time of increasing pressure from healthcare reform to deliver high quality and cost-effective care," said study author Craig M. Lilly, MD, a professor of medicine, anesthesiology and surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worchester, in a news release.
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