Digital Support for Family Health Protection by Health Visitors: The “Health Visitors for a Healthy Generation and Nation” Project

Abstract

Aim: To test whether a photoplethysmography based automated pulsewave analysis system designed for remote patient monitoring can be used (attitudes, technical usability, integration into daily routine) in the work of the Hungarian health visitors during their duties of monitoring pregnant mothers and their relatives. This way, we are taking the first step towards an increased level of safety during pregnancy and creating space for timely prevention measures for society. Materials and methods: A novel telemedicine tool was distributed amongst volunteering home visitors (n=28), who started to use the system in their daily routines and distributed 115 smart pulse oximeters, taught their patients how to use the app and how to make measurements on a regular basis. Results: During the project, 644 subjects used the system 6097 times. Out of the 28 home visitors 17 answered the questionnaire at the end of the project, expressing an increased sense of connectedness to their patients and motivation to continue the project. Conclusion: The project proved that the health visitors are open to trying new possibilities to support the everyday work of family care, they could learn easily how to use the telemedicine system used in the project. Moreover, they successfully trained their patients to use the system at home. The next step of the project is to evaluate the health-economic risks and benefits of using the system in family care and upon favorable results the system might become part of the everyday routine of the health visitors.