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Trial to study how remote patient monitoring improves
health outcomes, enhances patients’ quality of life while reducing
costs
Paris, November 5, 2009 – The Auckland District Health Board (ADHB),
Gen-i (a member of the Telecom New Zealand Group) and Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext
Paris and NYSE: ALU) have joined efforts to launch New Zealand’s first trial of
a healthcare remote patient monitoring (RPM) solution using mobile technology
to monitor and manage chronic illness in the home. The three-month trial
focuses on 20 heart disease patients selected by Auckland Hospital.
During the trial, participants are provided with easy-to-use equipment to
take daily measurements that are automatically transmitted via mobile phone to
a secure online database monitored by the ADHB cardiac team. The equipment also
lets patients monitor their own readings. The more frequent data collection
will enable medical personnel to more quickly discover changes in health
status, enabling quicker medical intervention when necessary, while making more
productive use of face-to-face appointments. Once the initial trial results
have been assessed, ADHB hopes to extend the program to patients with other
chronic illnesses like diabetes.
Worldwide, remote patient monitoring technology is emerging as a cost and
time effective tool to keep people with chronic conditions well and out of the
hospital. The Alcatel-Lucent
TeleHealth Manager allows patients to provide health data using devices
they’re already familiar with (e.g., mobile phones) in a secure manner, while
also providing reminders, alerts and online reports to help patients and their
healthcare professionals better understand and manage their conditions. Gen-i
is integrating the project’s delivery technologies and ADHB is supporting the
medical care team with patient care specifications and training.
Auckland District Health Board Chief Funding and Planning Officer, Dr Denis
Jury, says the innovative Telehealth monitoring system could improve health
outcomes and enhance patients’ quality of life, while reducing costs and
increasing clinical efficiencies for health providers. “The technology is
emerging as a cost and time effective tool worldwide to help keep people with
long term conditions well and out of hospital,” said Dr Jury.
Chris Quin, CEO of Gen-i, explains that faced with rapidly increasing
numbers of patients with chronic illnesses, the health sector is looking for
ways to consolidate specialists’ time and relieve pressure on them. “The
Telehealth initiative combats both these issues while also providing positive
health outcomes for patients. Gen-i and Telecom are well placed with the scale,
technology and infrastructure to support the solution nationwide and through
Gen-i’s existing relationships with DHBs and other health organisations.
Quin adds that mobile technologies provide a simple and cost effective
platform for this approach. “Patients and health professionals are likely to be
familiar with how to use a mobile phone, so set up and training is straight
forward. The process is completed in a matter of seconds, providing near
real-time monitoring and response,” he adds.
Alcatel-Lucent continues to offer innovative communications solutions for
the healthcare industry and leverages its relationships by working with service
providers and medical providers throughout the world to enable enhanced patient
care. “Alcatel-Lucent’s work with Gen-i offers these trial patients a secure
and reliable remote patient monitoring service that will afford them greater
flexibility in the way that they manage their health and recovery, and we are
confident that this application will prove beneficial to them and will be able
to be replicated at many other medical centres,” said Steve Lowe, Head of
Alcatel-Lucent’s business in New Zealand.
More information about Alcatel-Lucent solutions for the
healthcare industry is available online.
About Gen-i
Gen-i is at the forefront of helping customers take advantage of the
convergence of technology and telecommunications, and the new opportunities
this makes possible. Gen-i works alongside its 3,300 corporate, government and
business customers to deliver seamless and integrated ICT solutions. A member
of the Telecom New Zealand Group, Gen-i achieves this with the support of over
3,000 highly skilled people in 17 locations across New Zealand and Australia.
For more information on Gen-i, visit  www.gen-i.co.nz
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