FORT WASHINGTON, Pa. (PRWEB)
March 12, 2020

RespirCare is employing HGE Health’s adapted solution for remotely monitoring patients with respiratory disease to support quarantine and containment efforts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The adapted solution will allow patients with confirmed, suspected, or at-risk for COVID-19 to submit symptom logs via HGE Health’s remote symptom management platform. In addition to the standard respiratory symptoms tracked in the clinically-validated HGE Health solution for COPD (e.g. cough, fever, shortness of breath), the adaptation will include screening and triage questions recommended for use by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) such as contact with persons known to have COVID-19, fatigue, chills, and body aches.

RespirCare is uniquely positioned as a clinical hub with a walk-in clinical setting that serves patients with respiratory conditions in Oklahoma. To protect patients, visitors and clinical staff from the virus, RespirCare will enroll patients 30-days before they are scheduled to visit the clinic in HGE Health’s platform to monitor each patient’s symptoms, exposure, and quarantine efforts on a daily basis. Patients with any common symptoms or multiple “other” symptoms of COVID 19, as identified by the CDC triage guidelines, are contacted via telephone by clinical staff (nurses and respiratory therapists), triaged, and potentially treated remotely to avoid unnecessary contact and exposure from a clinic visit. High-risk and highly symptomatic patients are appropriately referred to the proper health care facility with advance notice to the providers.

“Patients with COPD and other respiratory conditions are at an increased risk for severe outcomes if they become infected by COVID-19,” stated Dr. Mark Boomer, founder and CEO of RespirCare. “The lungs of COVID-19 patients can become infected, causing lung congestion or the lungs to begin filling with fluid in a worst-case scenario. When this occurs, the heart works harder in an effort to satisfy the body’s demand for oxygen. Patients with COPD or another underlying respiratory condition already have limited lung capacity, so a COVID-19 infection has the potential to make a bad situation worse. Our remote access to the symptom data for our COPD patients using HGE Health’s telemedicine platform allows us to intervene before the respiratory condition of our patients deteriorates to a point requiring inpatient medical care, but also enables us to isolate those patients at home, before they can expose others to COVID-19.”

HGE Health, a healthcare technology-enabled services company whose solutions empower physicians to better manage their COPD patient’s symptoms, joined forces nearly a year ago with RespirCare to manage COPD patients seen by the RespirCare clinic in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The collaboration between RespirCare and HGE Health has already improved the lives of COPD patients and is beginning to serve the needs of COVID-19 patients while protecting the general public against the virus.

COVID-19 has now spread to over 110 countries around the world, infecting more than 120,000 and killing more than 4,000. The World Health Organization (“WHO”) recognizes that the severity of Coronavirus is linked to the age and health condition of patients. Patients of an advanced age (at least 60 years old) and diagnosed with a co-morbid disease are the most likely to experience a severe infection of Coronavirus, which requires special treatment of patients such as those enrolled in HGE Health’s platform who suffer from a respiratory condition. The WHO’s clinical management recommendation states that oxygen therapy is the major treatment intervention for patients with a severe Coronavirus infection, as patients with an acute respiratory infection are at significant risk of critical illness. Mortality in those with critical illness has been reported as over 50%, according to the WHO, thus implementation of proven critical care interventions such as lung protective ventilation should be optimized.

HGE Health’s digital platform and technology-enabled services, called HGE Care, allows pulmonary and primary care physicians to remotely care for patients from anywhere in the nation, and help patients better understand and manage changes in their COPD symptoms. Thanks to a daily digital interaction with their healthcare team, patients are engaged in their own symptom management, and log their symptoms on the HGE Care platform over 80% – 90% of the time. Patients enjoy peace of mind that each day they experience a change from their typical COPD symptoms, their own physician/care team will provide same-day feedback, helping patients breathe easier, avoiding ER visits and hospital admissions, and enjoy an improved quality of life, all while reducing overall healthcare costs for patients and their health plan.

About HGE Health

Headquartered in Fort Washington, PA, HGE Health harnesses its deep experience in chronic disease management and digital health in pulmonary disease, telemedicine and mobile health to develop a clinical services platform that delivers better care faster at a much lower cost for patients, physicians and payors. Built on clinical protocols developed and supported by 16 years of research, the company’s technology has compiled the longest running and world’s largest longitudinal data set of COPD symptoms, interventions and clinical management to help physicians provide care for a geographically and socio-economically diverse COPD and pulmonary patient population.

About RespirCare

Founded in Tulsa, OK, RespirCare is a novel clinic dedicated to treating acute and chronic respiratory conditions, from minor to the most severe. Remote symptom monitoring is offered to allow clinical interventions to be performed immediately, as symptoms begin to worsen. Treatment is available at RespirCare by appointment and as a walk-in clinic, which is open 7 days a week to ensure immediate care is available when patients need it most. A separate waiting room available for contagious patients, and oxygen outlets throughout establishes a patient-centric waiting environment with patient wellbeing and comfort in mind. RespirCare offers regular and after-hours care for no more than the cost of a visit to your regular pulmonary specialist, avoiding the costs of an emergency department visit.

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