IoT in action as NHS England trials remote patient monitoring

Reliq Health is working with NHS England to check up on patients in Imperial College Hospital pilot.

NHS England is piloting a remote patient monitoring system to see if the technology improves patient health outcomes. The pilot is being run from Imperial College Hospital in London.

The trail sees the healthcare organisation use the Internet of Things (IoT) to create a fully automated “virtual hospital ward” in the patient’s home, providing real-time tracking of patients’ vital signs, medication adherence, and movements within the home.

NHS England is using a platform from Reliq Health that provides patients with audible alerts and reminders to collect their vitals, take their medications and perform prescribed rehab or fitness activities to support proactive self-care. Patient education materials are also provided through the Reliq Health platform to help patients and their families better understand and manage their chronic conditions.

Long-term health conditions

The NHS England is the largest single-payer healthcare system in the world, with an annual budget of over £100 billion ($124.18 billion). There are over 15 million patients in England who are coping with at least one long-term health condition. These chronic conditions not only negatively impact patients’ quality of life, but also account for over half of all General Practitioner (GP) appointments and 70 percent of hospital bed days. NHS England has estimated that improvements in self-care in this population could result in £584 million ($725 million) in savings by 2021.

Dr. Lisa Crossley, CEO of Reliq Health, said the goal of this pilot is to demonstrate the value of Reliq Health’s self-care solution in improving health outcomes and reducing the cost of care delivery for chronic disease patients after they are discharged home from hospital.

“Our platform uses a combination of secure cloud-based software, voice technology, wearables and sensors to support patients and their loved ones in proactively managing their chronic conditions at home, reducing exacerbations and disease-related complications, decreasing healthcare costs and enhancing patient and family satisfaction,” she said.

Care improvement for NHS England

Lee Cottle, director at Push Technology, told Internet of Business that with the use of mobile devices, real-time patient information could be shared amongst nursing teams to help them improve care and recognise issues faster.

“For example, when changing shift throughout the week, real-time information could be used to monitor patients and share knowledge to ensure that care is kept at an optimum level,” he said.

“Furthermore, personal patient needs on the ward could be monitored and shared in real-time, so all staff are aware of prescribed medicines, dietary needs as well as regular checks that need to take place. Notifications could be shared to inform nurses of when to turn immobile patients, while patients who can walk around could be tracked to ensure they are safe on the hospital grounds.”