A recently published study out of University of Toronto illustrates the double bind of telehealth at present. Qualitatively, in this small group (n=22) study, there were strong directional findings when mHealth supports conventional care for heart failure. BlackBerry (!) based monitoring of various devices and daily symptom questions improved patient self-care, awareness of their condition and motivation, as well as clinician proactivity and decision support. The problems were the all-too-familiar 1) how to pay for it (and this in a centralized health system) and 2) clinician work load increases, 3) lack of clinic readiness. Perceptions and Experiences of Heart Failure Patients and Clinicians on the Use of Mobile Phone-Based Telemonitoring (Journal of Internet Medical Research)
1 thought on “Canadian mHealth heart failure pilot: qualitative gains vs. brick wall of cost, workload”
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Donna:
Your comment about the Canadian health care system being “centralized” needs some clarification. The large majority of docs in Ontario are paid on a fee for service basis. If there is no fee schedule for the remote monitoring they do not receive remuneration for their services. In some instances groups of docs are paid a salary. In those instances it is easier for them to adopt a new and innovative form of care delivery.