Obesity Prevention –  Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) as an Effective Treatment

It’s highly likely that your medical practice has included many patients needing weight management and obesity prevention interventions in recent years.^1,2 Societal stigma, cultural pressures, and your patients’ complex personal histories are but a few barriers to overcoming this long-term health problem.³

To further complicate matters, the never-ending barrage of so-called “extreme diets” can cause patients much frustration, confusion, and possibly other negative health effects.⁴

Yes…undoing the damage that comes from misguided obesity solutions leads to headaches for dedicated physicians and their hard-working staff.

At Medek Remote Patient Monitoring Systems, we know that weight management, even for the mildly overweight, is not an easy fix. Indeed, it takes an inordinate amount of time to really get to the root of your patient’s problem as well as to overcome the barriers to improvement.

The Fundamentals of Medek RPM

Our remote monitoring devices, delivered to the patient in their home setting, can include the following: blood pressure cuffs, pulse oximeters, weight scales, and/or glucose meters. However, the major benefit for both the doctor and the patient is cellular connectivity.

Consider the following advantages of Medek’s full-service remote monitoring system.

⇒ Patient data is collected daily.

⇒ Physicians and other medical practice staff can access documentation 24/7.

⇒ Increased ease and accuracy in assessing patient compliance and progress.

⇒ The Medek Clinical Care Team informs the doctor’s office of measures that fall outside the norm, as these are often early warning signs.

⇒ HIPAA-secured connectivity.

♦ A major advantage of RPM is that, as the prescribing physician, you are able to develop a new revenue stream through dedicated CPT Codes. This revenue stream can include the  other approved providers of your practice.

Meaningful Weight Management Solutions Through RPM

The Medek staff is passionate to help our patients manage their weight so they can avoid the monumental challenges of obesity. We all know the positive results: the successful prevention of obesity-related chronic and acute diagnoses such as diabetes, cardiac disease, respiratory conditions, some cancers, stroke, and numerous musculoskeletal disorders.⁵

In its acceptance of RPM as a reimbursable therapeutic intervention, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) support several critical principles of high-quality care.

Continuous Monitoring of Patient Status

With RPM, measurements such as weight, blood pressure, blood sugar, and oxygen saturation can be accessed daily (incorporated into CPT Code 99454). This gives your staff valuable insight into how well the patient is functioning between office visits. The Medek Clinical Care Team is always available to provide an additional level of analysis of all data.

Patient Education

The very act of teaching patients to take their own physiologic measurements on a regular basis (this is done by Medek staff) can be very empowering to your patients. Initial individual patient education is reimbursed through CPT Code 99453, as soon as the physician gains consent from the patient.

Improving Patient Engagement

Eventually, patients will take pride in managing certain aspects of their health. True, fluctuations in weight might be discouraging at times. However, this is one of the reasons why CMS established CPT billing codes 99457 and 99458 for patient care management, which may be done over the phone. Patients can share their questions and concerns in the privacy of their own homes. As patients become more involved and engaged in their progress, their compliance with their treatment recommendations improves.

Health Outcomes

Evidence-based research and clinical expertise support several positive outcomes in training patients to continuously monitor their own status.

A Systematic Review: of clinical studies published between 2005 and 2015 that focused specifically on RPM revealed multiple positive trends in patient self-management habits, including tracking weight and taking blood pressure.⁶

As a Therapeutic Intervention: Remote physiologic monitoring has many uses, including long-distance check-ups/treatment, post-acute stabilization, and pre-and post-management of chronic conditions.⁷

An Innovation in Care Delivery: Remote patient monitoring expands the reach of physicians and their medical practice. Patients who aren’t able to get to their doctor’s office for months can now get the treatment they need through internet connectivity.⁸

A Catalyst for Value-Based Care – That Also Advances Financial Solvency

♦ We know for certain that telemedicine technologies such as remote patient monitoring will never replace the expertise of the healthcare professional.

We also know, however, that for decades, it has become difficult for physicians to meet revenue goals by treating patients solely in person. The rising and unpredictable US inflation rate,⁹ along with supply and labor shortages, have heavily impaired the ability of physician-owned practices to maintain financial solvency. Although the COVID-19 pandemic caused its own set of global challenges that we would never wish to repeat, it did usher in extensive innovations in all revenue-producing remote patient monitoring technologies.¹⁰

At Medek, we know that RPM is a cost-effective therapeutic tool that facilitates patient progress, empowerment, and education. We understand your challenges and commit to helping you utilize these amazing technological tools so that you can care for your patients while still thriving financially.

Join us in this WIN-WIN proposition!

Ask for a Demo

SOURCES

1. Fryar CD, Carroll MD, Afful J. (2020). Prevalence of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity among adults aged 20 and over: United States, 1960–1962 through 2017–2018. NCHS Health E-Stats. 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity-adult-17-18/obesity-adult.htm#Figure
2. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Diseases. (n.d.) Talking with patients about weight loss: Tips for primary care providers. National Institutes of Health. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/professionals/clinical-tools-patient-management/weight-management/talking-adult-patients-tips-primary-care-clinicians
3. (Author). (2021, October 7) Diagnosis: Stigma. It’s Bigger Than Me. [Video]. https://www.itsbiggerthan.com/time-to-talk/
4. Fetters, K.A., (2021, August 3). What happens to your body when you go on an extreme diet? US Health News https://health.usnews.com/wellness/articles/what-happens-to-your-body-when-you-go-on-an-extreme-diet#:~:text=In%20the%20short%20term%2C%20extreme%20diets%20can%20help,can%20set%20you%20up%20for%20rebound%20weight%20gain
5. Harvard TH Chan (n.d.) Weight problems take a hefty toll on body and mind. Harvard T.H. Chan-School of Public Health. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/obesity-consequences/health-effects/
6. Vegesna, A.; Tran, M.; Angelaccio, M.; Arcona, S. (2017). Remote Patient Monitoring via Non-Invasive Digital Technologies: A Systematic Review. Telemed. e-Health, 23, 3–17. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Remote-Patient-Monitoring-via-Non-Invasive-Digital-Vegesna-Tran/a7103ff008bd5b12db729721f1dc5ba2a4abdbd3?sort=is-influential DOI:10.1089/tmj.2016.0051
7. LeadingAge (n.d.) [updates a 2013 paper] Telehealth and Remote Patient Monitoring for Long-Term and Post-Acute Care: A Primer and Provider Selection Guide. https://leadingage.org/white-papers/telehealth-and-remote-patient-monitoring-long-term-and-post-acute-care-primer-and
8. New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst. (2018, February 1). What is Telehealth? Innovations in Care Delivery. https://catalyst.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/CAT.18.0268
9. Amadeo, K. (2022, October 13). What is the current US inflation rate? The Balance. https://www.thebalancemoney.com/current-u-s-inflation-rate-statistics-and-news-3306139
10. Donohue D. (2020). A Primary Care Answer to a Pandemic: Keeping a Population of Patients Safe at Home through Chronic Care Management and Remote Patient Monitoring. American journal of lifestyle medicine, 14(6), 595–601. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827620935382

ADDITIONAL SOURCES – Medek Website