Fresenius introduces new telehealth portion to its home dialysis platform
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A telehealth component is set to be added to Fresenius’ connected health platform for home dialysis, according to a press release from the company. The rollout of the telehealth solution will initially launch in select markets, with expansion planned for later this year.
“This is part of our ongoing strategy to expand and improve the capabilities of our connected health platforms,” Ahmad Sharif, MD, MPH, chief medical information officer for Fresenius Medical Care North America, told Healio Nephrology.
The connected health platform, known as TheHub, is composed of three integrated applications: one for patients; one for the care team; and one for providers. According to Sharif, telehealth will be incorporated into the patient-centered application (accessible by mobile phone, tablet or desktop), which allows patients to review routine laboratory tests and medications, place supply orders and document their daily treatment data, vital signs and complications.
“We spent significant time over the past year finding a solution that will integrate seamlessly into PatientHub [already used by 19,000 patients], so our patients have one single application that can support their success on home therapies,” Sharif said.
The telehealth component will use the same application and provide patients with the opportunity to communicate with their care team and physician through scheduled video chats.
Stephen E. Garcia, MD, medical director of home therapies at Springfield Nephrology Associates in Missouri, also weighed in on the news: “As someone involved in the telehealth pilot program last year, this is a great step forward in our ability to improve the care we deliver and to make home therapy even easier for our patients, reducing the burden of care,” he told Healio Nephrology. “Our patients want to stay home for their care, and this further allows their ability to do so.”
Sharif added that Fresenius hopes to have hundreds of patients actively using the new telehealth video feature within the next few months. – by Mark E. Neumann and Melissa J. Webb
Disclosures: Sharif and Garcia report no relevant financial disclosures.
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