Telehealth Grantee Directory

Network Partners:

CMH, CMH Foundation, and Bolivar Family Health Care. The Project Infocare Network was formed in December 2002. At present, the network holds an Electronic Medical Record (EMR) for 80,000 patients. The project started on 11/02/06. It will serve an estimated 170 patients in the first year (when home units are phased in each month) through an estimated 15,300 encounters.

Project Purpose:

Project Infocare will integrate in-home telemanagement into its existing EMR network, evaluate whether telemanagement in an EMR environment will improve quality of care and outcomes, and evaluate whether active monitoring of patients by physicians using telemanagement improves quality of care and outcomes more than nurse-only monitoring.

Outcomes Expected/Project Accomplishments:

Improved Care-Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) by CMS (Medicare); improved patient compliance-data from home health units; improved access-speed of response to patient changes; improved clinical outcomes-OASIS and CMS; cost-effective service delivery-difference between average cost of episode before and after telemanagement; changes in blood glucose levels in diabetic patients.

Service Area:

The only site is Home Healthcare (HH) in CMH serving Polk, Dallas, Dade, Cedar, and Hickory Counties. HH covers a number of secondary sites.

Services Provided:

Daily monitoring of vital patient information along with daily education and medication management; adding information to the patient's EMR; increased contact between patient and nurses, physicians, and necessary health care professionals.

Equipment:

Telemanagement will occur via 40 Well-at-Home units, phased in over eight months, for a single home use of 50 days, allowing each unit to be employed six times a year.

Transmission:

Patients will convey daily data via regular phone lines. Data will be placed on EMR, which will become available via the Wide Area Network. Physicians can also use the Internet to reach the EMR via Citrix.