A new digital remote monitoring technology in care homes has reduced emergency hospital admissions by 25% and A&E attendances by 11%.
As part of the HDR UK Better Care programme, a collaboration between the universities of Sheffield, Durham, Lancaster and Newcastle, researchers set out to investigate the benefits of using a digital technology for remote health monitoring within care homes.
The study, published in Age and Ageing – the official journal of the British Geriatrics Society found the remote technology reduced hospital A&E attendances and emergency admissions by 25%.
Health Call, an NHS-owned digital company, developed a smartphone app that care home staff can use to monitor and manage the long-term health of residents by recording daily observations, provisioning a way for doctors and other clinicians to review the resident and offer guidance for their care while the resident is in their home.
Researchers looked at the impact of using the Health Call app for 8,702 residents in 118 care homes across the North East of England between 2018 and 2021.
Alex Garner, a PhD student at the Centre for Health Informatics, Computing and Statistics at Lancaster University and first author on the study, stated: “As the age of the UK population increases, finding solutions that improve care and quality of life for older people has become increasingly important.
“The findings of our study highlight the potential of data-driven solutions such as remote monitoring technology to improve care through reducing emergency attendances and admissions to hospital.
“Care home staff also reported that using the app boosted their confidence in being able to identify possible deterioration earlier and support better management of illnesses before hospitalisation is needed.
“Our hope is that these types of digital technology will play a vital role in improving communication between health service providers in the future, benefiting both patients and the NHS.”
