Reduction in Resource Utilization
Background
Remote Patient Management (RPM) Technologies collect medical information and transmit it to healthcare providers for patient management. RPM may help clinicians improve outcomes of patients receiving automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) at home.
Peritoneal Dialysis (PD) at home is both more convenient and less costly than hemodialysis, which requires 3, 4-hours visits per week to the dialysis facility.
- The RPM technology is a two-way connectivity platform that records treatment information and electronically transfers it daily through a secure online portal for a timely review by clinicians.
- The technology also allows clinicians to change programs remotely.
Objectives
Study Design
Twelve APD Patient simulated profiles were developed by a group of nephrologists and nurses based on potential clinical scenarios.
- Two versions of each profile were created to simulate healthcare resources use: one assuming use of RPM and one without.
- Eleven APD teams estimated the resources that would be used in the "with RPM" scenario using an on-line survey.
Table 1: Study Population
What have we seen so far?
Potential reduction in resource utilization across the three countries ranged from
1-2 Fewer Hospitalizations
2-5 Fewer Emergency Room Visits
1-4 Fewer Home Visits
4-8 Fewer Unplanned Clinic Visits
Total potential cost savings per year across the three countries
$23,364 in savings in the USA
$11,477 in savings in Germany
$7,088 in savings in Italy
Conclusions
In a simulated environment, RPM reduced healthcare system resource utilization and cost in APD patients with problems such as treatment adherence, fluid overload, volume depletion and low drain/unidentified alerts.
Note: This study was conducted in a simulated environment which will require additional studies to confirm findings. Information derived from this study may not correlate with clinical outcomes