Results of a telehealth-enabled chronic care management service to support people with long-term conditions at home

Both congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are more common among Maori than non-Maori people, and the cultural acceptability of home-based remote monitoring technology has not been tested. We conducted a 12-month pilot trial of home telemonitoring. Patients were randomly assigned to the control and intervention groups. Patients in the control group showed no clear differences in quality of life at the end of the trial. The telehealth group showed a consistent trend towards improved quality of life on several instruments, including the SF-36, the St George Respiratory Questionnaire and the K10 questionnaire; the improvement in the latter was significant. Hospitalizations were reduced in both the control (-19%) and telehealth group (-25%). Patient interviews indicated that the technology was acceptable to most patients and their families, including the Maori. The results from the pilot trial suggest that wider implementation with a cost benefit evaluation could be worthwhile.