Improving Adherence to Self-Management Programs with Remote Monitoring

Written by Dr. Paul Helmuth, Physician Entrepreneur, Keva Health

Although health care providers, patient care advocates, payers and policy makers have long encouraged adoption of self-management programs for patients with chronic medical conditions, it has been difficult to disseminate even the most efficacious programs widely. Outside of controlled clinical research environments, long-term adherence to chronic disease self-management programs has been disappointing.

For many chronic diseases including asthma, COPD, diabetes, obesity and hypertension, engagement of patients self-management activities can result in significantly improved clinical outcomes. Moreover, self-management is associated with decreased healthcare utilization and improved medication adherence. For patients with asthma, self-management programs that encourage monitoring of respiratory symptoms, peak expiratory flow measurements, and use of controller medications result in fewer visits to the emergency department, less use of rescue medications for acute symptoms, and better quality of life for patients. 

Unfortunately, when patients do not receive frequent feedback and coaching about the results of self-management activities, they are not likely to continue them. For example, if a patient with asthma continues to monitor and record symptoms and peak flow measurements without getting any advice from her physician’s office about how to adjust her care, she is not likely to continue monitoring for long. By integrating innovative remote monitoring functionality with evidence-based self-monitoring programs, Keva Health expects to enhance long-term adherence and engagement with self-management activities. Patients receive personalized, actionable feedback in response to patient-reported symptoms and peak flow measurements and can even send and receive messages from their physician’s office about their care.

About Keva Health

Keva Health’s platform is integrating innovative remote monitoring functionality with evidence based self-monitoring programs for patients with chronic respiratory diseases to improve outcomes and reduce cost. Please contact us at [email protected] for more info.