Nearly half of American adults have chronic illnesses, which account for 80% of healthcare spending. Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a costly chronic disease to treat. The document discusses how telehealth programs that monitor CHF patients daily using devices have improved health outcomes and lowered costs. It provides evidence that telehealth can effectively manage CHF through remote monitoring, reducing emergency visits and hospitalizations while improving health.

1. RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN © 2012
www.PosterPresentations.com
Congestive Heart Failure is a leading chronic illness in the US.1 Due to the
severity of the disease, immediate emergency care is essential for patients
experiencing heart failure. The costs of these emergency services are
unsustainably high and require intervention through technology.
Monitoring CHF patient health through telehealth devices has been at the
forefront of this innovation. With devices like the Health Buddy and the
Blue Scale, providers are able to care for and communicate with their CHF
patients long-distance. Using telehealth, health management of CHF
patients is improving and healthcare costs spent on CHF are decreasing.
ABSTRACT RESULTS DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION
REFERENCES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to thank Dr. Nauert and all of the supporting staff of the
UT Health Informatics and Health IT Program for their help and guidance
in completing this project.
The University of Texas at Austin, Health Informatics and Health IT Certificate Program, Summer 2015
Ariana Triesault & Paula Ferreira
Never Miss a Beat: Congestive Heart Failure
Management Through Telehealth
METHODS
Effective telehealth programs in the United States have shown to be
successful at managing congestive heart failure by demonstrating that
overall:
•The patient’s general health, social functioning, and depression
symptoms had improved, as compared with those who were not using a
telehealth program
•There were significantly less visits to the emergency department
•Telehealth participants incurred less days in the hospital6
•Participating patients experienced reduced HC spending (figure 3)2
The results of this research project indicate that while telehealth
programs aim to address healthcare disparities, such as the management
of congestive heart failure, three areas of concern must first be focused
on in order to successfully implement future programs:5
1.Technology assessment
2.Evaluation
3.Technical assistance and education
More research is needed in the areas of primary care research, multisite
collaborative telehealth studies, nonphysician telehealth services, and
methodological development of a “gold standard” for telehealth studies.
Telehealth programs such as those in effect in England may perhaps serve
as models for a “gold standard” at the national level in the future.
Telehealth is an effective approach to delivering quality care while
lowering healthcare costs.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Figure 1: Mortality Rate due to Heart Failure1
1. Chronic Disease Overview. (2015, May 18). Retrieved June 26, 2015, from
http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/overview/
2. Baker, L. C., Johnson, S. J., Macaulay, D., & Birnbaum, H. (2011). Integrated
telehealth and care management program for Medicare beneficiaries with chronic
disease linked to savings. Health Affairs, 30(9), 1689-1697.
3. Piette, J.D., Striplin, D., Marinec N., Chen J., Trivedi R.B., Aron D.C., Fisher L., Aikens
J.E., (2015). A mobile health intervention supporting heart failure patients and their
informal caregivers: a randomized comparative effectiveness trial. Journal of
Medical Internet Research, 17(6), doi: 10.2196/jmir.4550.
4. Chen, J., Quadri, S., Pollonini, L., Naribole, S., Ding, J., Zheng, Z., ... & Dacso, C. C.
(2014, October). Blue scale: Early detection of impending congestive heart failure
events via wireless daily self-monitoring. In Healthcare Innovation Conference
(HIC), 2014 IEEE (pp. 63-66). IEEE.
5. Puskin, D., Cohen, Z., Ferguson, A., Krupinski, E., & Spaulding, R. (2010).
Implementation and Evaluation of Telehealth Tools and Technologies. Telemedicine
and E-Health, 96-102.
6. Gellis, Z. D., Kenaley, B., McGinty, J., Bardelli, E., Davitt, J., & Ten Have, T. (2012).
Outcomes of a telehealth intervention for homebound older adults with heart or
chronic respiratory failure: a randomized controlled trial. The Gerontologist, 52(4),
541-552.
Nearly half of all American adults have some sort of chronic illness.1
Treatment of chronic diseases consumes virtually 80% of the US healthcare
spending.1 With seven out of the 10 top causes of death being due to
chronic diseases, it is paramount that preventative measures be taken to
improve population health.1
The biggest killer, topping the list of chronic diseases, is heart disease.
According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, cardiovascular
disease killed 611,105 Americans in 2013. The highest indices of deaths due
to cardiac diseases fall within the geographical distribution of the southern
states.1
Out of the widespread chronic illnesses in America, Congestive Heart
Failure (CHF) is one of the most costly to treat even though it is easily
preventable. There have been a variety of approaches in implementing
heart disease management throughout the US. One of the most powerful
approaches has been through the use of technology. An example of such
an approach is a program by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) that monitors daily vitals, and behavioral patterns of those
previously affected by CHF through a handheld device.2
Progressive programs such as this one are the next step in the future of
chronic disease management.
This project was completed with guidance from Dr. Nauert. We used
Google Scholar and PubMed to locate articles for this poster. Terms such
as telehealth, Congestive Heart Failure , and management were used. We
reviewed articles from the Medical Affairs, the Journal of Medical Internet
Research , and the International Journal of Medical Informatics. We used
articles published between 2011 and 2015 that reported on the use of
telehealth for Congestive Heart Failure management. Statistical data was
obtained by accessing the CDC website.
Ariana B. Triesault –
ariana.triesault@gmail.com
Paula R. Ferreira –
paula.ribas.ferreira@gmail.com
INTRODUCTION
PURPOSE
The purpose of this research is to demonstrate the efficacy of current
telehealth programs in managing Congestive Heart Failure in the US
A study of 6,000 patients suffering from diabetes, heart failure or COPD
A broad workflow of the telehealth process for a CHF patient
Research-based evidence that illustrates the financial
benefits of implementing telehealth for CHF treatment
Figure 3: Workflow of Telehealth for CHF Treatment4 Graph 1: Quarterly Average of Medicare Spend2
Chart 1: Benefits of Remote Monitoring6
Figure 2: Components of a
Telehealth System
Current Telehealth
Devices:
•Mobile applications
•Personal monitors
•Bluetooth peripherals
•Health Buddy
•Blue Scale
•Personal GPS tracking
systems
•Sensors