At home like in the clinic? COVID-19 patients with a pulse oximeter and under remote medical care

Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 patients suffering from the disease at home, the Ministry of Health has created a Home Medical Care program that allows you to remotely monitor the health of patients. Anna Bobrowska/KFP

- The Home Medical Care Program is intended to provide the fastest possible assistance to patients suffering from Covid-19 who are isolated at home in the event of their health deterioration, says Mariusz Szymański, spokesman for the Pomeranian National Health Fund. - And at the same time it is to support primary care physicians in the supervision of patients with Covid-19.

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Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 patients suffering from the disease at home, the Ministry of Health has created a Home Health Care program that allows you to remotely monitor the health of patients. The program uses a pulse oximeter as a diagnostic tool and the PulsoCare application for transferring and monitoring patient data.

The DOM program automatically includes patients over 55 who have tested positive for Covid-19.

A patient included in the program receives a free pulse oximeter (delivered to their home by Poczta Polska), with which they will independently measure arterial blood oxygen saturation and pulse rate. Remote control of the parameters measured by the patient will be possible after installing the free PulsoCare installation on the phone. Through this application, its results will go to the Contact Center appointed by the Ministry of Health. Consultants and doctors from the Center will monitor the results of patients around the clock. In situations arousing anxiety, the doctor will call the patient and determine further actions, and if necessary, he may decide that the patient needs to be called an ambulance.

The PulsoCare system is being tested in the clinic run by Andrzej Zapaśnik, a primary care physician, president of the BaltiMed Clinic in Gdańsk.

- This application is dedicated to patients at risk of a more severe course of COVID-19 who, after qualifying for the program, receive a pulse oximeter and the ability to regularly save measurements in the application, including body temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate and blood saturation measured with pulse oximeter - says Andrzej Zapaśnik. - Thanks to this, we know when something disturbing happens, for example, whether you need to call an ambulance. We have ten thousand patients in my clinic, we have ten pulse oximeters, and that seems to be enough. Teleconsultations, test result, PulsoCare system allows for relatively good care in these conditions.

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How does a pulse oximeter work? It is a special device that is put on a finger and that connects to the phone via Bluetooth. Andrzej Niedzielski, the Minister of Health, assures that the operation of the program is very simple and intuitive, and in case of any doubts, each patient can still receive advice from the 24-hour hotline.

As of November 30, 2020, 7,000 people were covered by the program in Poland. In Pomerania, 304 doctors gained access to the PulsoCare application

photo. Press materials of the Ministry of Health

- Pulse oximeters that we will provide to citizens connect via Bluetooth to a mobile phone on which the PulsoCare application is already installed. The measurement results are automatically sent to the monitoring center - explained the Minister of Health. - We encourage the use of a pulse oximeter, because it may depend on whether we capture the moment when we can help the patient.

After the patient has gone through the disease, a courier from the Polish Post Office will come for the pulse oximeter, he will pick up the device, which, after appropriate sanitary procedures, can go to another patient.

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Patients under 55 with a positive test result may also be included in the program after completing a special PulsoCare form, which can be found on the website of the Ministry of Health, or after qualifying the patient for the Home Medical Care program by a primary care physician registered in the DOM system.

Also, anyone with a pulse oximeter can join the DOM program. More information on this subject can be obtained by calling the Patient Information Center - 800 190 590.

As of November 30, 2020, 7,000 people were covered by the program in Poland. In Pomerania, 304 doctors gained access to the PulsoCare application.