Home telemonitoring makes early hospital discharge of COVID-19 patients possible
Laura A. Grutters, Kalle Iskander Majoor, Elke Mattern, Johannes A. Hardeman, Christiaan F. P. van Swol, Adriane D.M. Vorselaars
Abstract
With great interest we read the article by Annis et al. 2020 in which they report a quick and effective implementation of a remote patient monitoring program as an effective approach for managing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms at home. We developed home telemonitoring after hospital discharge in COVID-19 patients to potentially reduce hospital stay whilst preserving good care. Furthermore, we report our experience with pulse oximetry, as was also suggested by Annis et al. The need for oxygen therapy increases length of hospitalization, since patients stay admitted until oxygen is tapered down. An increased duration of hospital stay increases use of facemasks and protective clothing, prolonged COVID-19 exposure for health care providers, and less available beds for other patients. 2] We retrospectively report on our pilot of home telemonitoring for COVID-19 patients in the Netherlands. Main outcomes were reducing length of hospitalization, safety, and patient satisfaction.