Hi, I am Karl Curran, as it happens i am the CEO of Gericloud the software company that looks at Remote Patient Monitoring and also Chronic Care management. Are you aware of these programs? Well if you are fifty-five years and above it would be wise to consider your health. I know, I know, that sounds like a cliche. You turn on the TV to watch your favorite baseball team (the Dodgers) and all you get are ads targeting this cohort, usually male, fifty-five plus, perhaps a little over weight and then its all about "Big-Pharma". They are pushing medications and it can be very trying
The reality is, due to an economy which is churn and burn, we have as a nation, a couple of alarming statistics that need to be addressed. We have a serious deficiency in doctors working in the family practice in tandem with an aging population, and if you didn't know, many of these patients suffer from two co-morbidities simultaneously within the space of a calendar year. Literally translated, this means two conditions that can do serious damage if not attended to. Let's face facts, the cost of sending patients to the hospital is astronomical. Modern technology in medicine today can help to reduce these hospitalization statistics dramatically. And I can attest to this personally.
I was learning how to read vital physiological data which populates our application ( Gericloud) using sim card technology. Nothing contrived here, I wanted to understand better how we can read the stats coming in from the devices we issue to our RPM patients. It could be a weight scale, a glucometer, or a blood pressure cuff. Using sim card technology, all the patient has to do is take 16 data points in a calendar month, and these devices remit the information right back to the doctor's office ready to be analyzed. Can you imagine if you are on this program with a heart condition and say diabetes for good measure ? These devices can save your life. The beauty of it, is that you don't even have to see the doctor. The stats are read and acted upon if there is an anomaly. The other program Gericloud works on is CCM. This program is all about the non face-to-face encounter too, only the dynamo is the care plan. These programs are magnificent if used properly. Doctors can now get rewarded efficiently for their pro-active care, and the patient can potentially reduce the risk of hospitalization, or in my case death.
I registered the blood pressure cuff on Gericloud, got the camera rolling to make an educational video about this very topic, Remote Patient Monitoring. I had the weight scales registered too. We supply the patients with the devices so they can self-monitor. Remember it's 16 data points in a month. This data when analyzed at the doctor's office is reimbursable under a CPT code issued by Medicare. I could feel the pressure on my upper arm, then I could feel my heart pumping stronger and stronger. The reading came out something like 170/114. Yikes, thats high, and being totally honest, I didn't really pay attention. I was happy with the video we had made for this website. I sent the video to the founder of Gericloud, Dr Arbis Rojas of Pasadena, and within a minute, he called me and said, "hey, we need to take your blood pressure again, that seems very high!!"
We took it again and yet again it read similar readings to the previous reading. Using modern tech, Dr Rojas sent a E-fax from his phone on UPdox to the pharmacy, requesting a blood pressure reducing medicine for me. I am 56, I have high cholesterol, and Dr Rojas introduced me to one of the biggest killers in America, know as the silent killer, the heart attack and really these types of conditions are so treatable. Could it be said that ignorance is the finger behind the trigger. I have booked an appointment with my doctor tomorrow, and hopefully I will get to the bottom of this issue. Thanks to RPM and an astute doctor, I more than likely will mend. I now have skin in the game, and that is to spread the word about Gericloud, RPM & CCM. It could save your life... It's that simple.