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Sibley County Public Health nurse Katie Kramer watched as Glendon Kiecker of Arlington checked his blood pressure, using newly implemented telehealth equipment. The equipment allows patients to more closely monitor their conditions, and send the results over a telephone line to the Public Health Department. The monitoring equipment is used in addition to the regularly scheduled nursing visits, Kramer said.

Sibley County Public Health is going high-tech with some client monitoring.

With a $20,000 grant through South Country Health Alliance, Sibley County Public Health purchased three telehealth monitors.

The two smaller units were put into service Nov. 9. They are connected to a telephone line and then the data is sent to Sibley County Public Health. A larger unit has video capabilities.

Depending on patient need, health care providers can place the monitors into the clients homes for taking blood pressure, measuring weight, measuring blood oxygen, measuring blood sugar, taking temperature, recording ECGs, recording stethoscope sounds, recording peak flow, conducting video visits, taking photos, asking questions, returning advice, delivering schedules, displaying graphs, sending schedule alerts, and delivering education content via the Web.

According to Allie Freidrichs, public health director, as many clients will be using the technology as appropriate. At this time, however, Public Health has three units, so at any given time there can be three clients using units. The units are able to be transferred to other clients as appropriate. Clients will be chosen based on diagnosis, ability/desire to use the machine, and with consultation from their health care providers.

Telehealth can be used for numerous illnesses. The most common, according to Freidrichs, are congestive heart failure, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/asthma, wound management, medication compliance, end state renal disease, cancer, post stroke/operative conditions.

Freidrichs anticipates some financial savings by the Public Health Department, but said it will minimal with the small number of units. At this time, the video unit is reimbursed as a visit by insurance, Freidrichs said. In the future, the smaller, portable unit may also be reimbursed as a visit. She also said Public Health may purchase more units.

“It will be difficult to prove the savings with such a small number of units, but the home care nurses will be able to provide more comprehensive care, without increasing costs, with miles and drive time,” Freidrichs explained.

Benefits identified for clients for using this equipment include early recognition and intervention for clients, decrease emergency room and hospital re-admissions, increase compliance with medication/treatments, and increase in independence for clients.

Benefits identified for Sibley County include increase staff productivity and increase of patients seen, decrease in operational costs, improved access to compliance, and to be able to provide better, more comprehensive care at the same or less cost.

Katie Kramer, home care nurse with Sibley County Public Health, said implementation of the system is “going really well.”

The first two clients using the units are from Arlington and Gibbon.

Glendon Kiecker, 65, of Arlington admitted that he was nervous [using the new equipment] “but now I understand it.” He has emphysema and congestive heart failure.

The computerized system allows Public Health to check his readings daily. For Kiecker, his blood oxygen level, blood pressure, and weight are checked daily around 10 a.m. He may check his readings more often, but is only required to submit one reading daily Monday through Friday.

The Public Health office then prints out the information and attaches it to the client’s chart. The medical information is stored on a protected Web site, Kramer said.

“This [telehealth] does not take care of scheduled visits,” Kramer explained. “This is extra monitoring for people with certain illnesses.”

The machine is user friendly, talking to the client and guiding him/her through the process. The machine has large buttons to make it easier to enter a required access code and other information.

Kramer praised Kiecker as “the perfect client to start out with. He is young enough and willing to do it.”

Other home care nurses using the system are Stephanie Kinney and LPN Donna Kuphal.