Dataset Information

Clinician Decisions After Notification of Elevated Blood Pressure Measurements From Patients in a Remote Monitoring Program.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

Guidelines recommend using telehealth for hypertension management, but insufficient evidence is available to guide strategies for incorporating telehealth data into clinical practice.

Objective

To describe how primary care teams responded to elevated remote blood pressure (BP) alerts in the electronic health record (EHR) in a randomized clinical trial of BP telemonitoring conducted in routine practice settings.

Design, setting, and participants

This retrospective cohort study reviewed EHR documentation from May 8, 2018, to August 9, 2019, in a single urban academic family practice site. Primary care teams comprising 28 attending physicians and nurse practitioners, residents, and nurses cared for 162 patients in a text-based clinical trial of remote BP monitoring remote BP monitoring. Data were analyzed from October 21, 2019, to April 30, 2021.

Exposures

Clinicians received a direct message in their EHR inbox when patients submitted at least 3 elevated BP readings.

Main outcomes and measures

Categories and frequencies of clinician action, created via review of EHR-documented clinician responses to EHR alerts by 2 physicians.

Results

Patients in this study (n = 162) were predominantly female (111 [68.5%]) and Black or African American (146 [90.1%]), whereas attending physicians (n = 21) were predominantly female (13 [61.9%]) and non-Hispanic White (19 [90.5%]) with a mean (SD) age of 51.6 (11.1) years. Five hundred fifty-two alerts fell into 12 categories of clinical actions. Clinicians acted on 343 alerts (62.1%). Common remote activities were to reconcile medications and assess adherence (120 of 552 alerts [21.7%]) and verify BP measurement technique (65 of 552 alerts [11.8%]). Clinicians also commonly requested appointments (120 of 552 alerts [21.7%]) and/or saw the patient in a subsequent office visit (114 of 552 alerts [20.7%]). Ninety-six alerts (17.4%) resulted in medication changes; half of these changes were remote (48 of 96 [50.0%]), and the other half were visit-based. For 209 of 552 alerts (37.9%), no changes were made to the care plan, typically without documenting clinical rationale (196 of 209 instances [93.8%]). Exploratory EHR review was used to infer potential clinical rationale for 106 (54.1%) of such cases, but there was insufficient information for the remaining 90 (45.9%).

Conclusions and relevance

These findings suggest that EHR alerts for elevated BP during remote monitoring were effective in prompting a mix of remote and office-based management. It was also common for the plan of care to remain unchanged, possibly suggesting need for more refined alerts and improved clinician support.

SUBMITTER: Lee NS

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8760617 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundAutomated texting platforms have emerged as a tool to facilitate communication between patients and health care providers with variable effects on achieving target blood pressure (BP). Understanding differences in the way patients interact with these communication platforms can inform their use and design for hypertension management.ObjectiveOur primary aim was to explore the unique phenotypes of patient interactions with an automated text messaging platform for BP monitoring. Our secondary aim was to estimate associations between interaction phenotypes and BP control.MethodsThis study was a secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial for adults with poorly controlled hypertension. A total of 201 patients with established primary care were assigned to the automated texting platform; messages exchanged throughout the 4-month program were analyzed. We used the k-means clustering algorithm to characterize two different interaction phenotypes: program conformity and engagement style. First, we identified unique clusters signifying differences in program conformity based on the frequency over time of error alerts, which were generated to patients when they deviated from the requested text message format (eg, ###/## for BP). Second, we explored overall engagement styles, defined by error alerts and responsiveness to text prompts, unprompted messages, and word count averages. Finally, we applied the chi-square test to identify associations between each interaction phenotype and achieving the target BP.ResultsWe observed 3 categories of program conformity based on their frequency of error alerts: those who immediately and consistently submitted texts without system errors (perfect users, 51/201), those who did so after an initial learning period (adaptive users, 66/201), and those who consistently submitted messages generating errors to the platform (nonadaptive users, 38/201). Next, we observed 3 categories of engagement style: the enthusiast, who tended to submit unprompted messages with high word counts (17/155); the student, who inconsistently engaged (35/155); and the minimalist, who engaged only when prompted (103/155). Of all 6 phenotypes, we observed a statistically significant association between patients demonstrating the minimalist communication style (high adherence, few unprompted messages, limited information sharing) and achieving target BP (P<.001).ConclusionsWe identified unique interaction phenotypes among patients engaging with an automated text message platform for remote BP monitoring. Only the minimalist communication style was associated with achieving target BP. Identifying and understanding interaction phenotypes may be useful for tailoring future automated texting interactions and designing future interventions to achieve better BP control.

Project description:BackgroundOur aim was to conduct a post participation survey of respondent experiences with in-home remote patient monitoring via telehealth for blood pressure monitoring of women with postpartum hypertension. We hypothesized that the in-home remote patient monitoring application will be implemented with strong fidelity and have positive patient acceptability.MethodsThis analysis was a planned secondary analysis of a non-randomized controlled trial of telehealth with remote blood pressure patient monitoring for postpartum hypertension compared to standard outpatient monitoring in women with a hypertension-related diagnosis during pregnancy. In collaboration with survey experts, we developed a 41-item web-based survey to assess 1) perception of quality of care received, 2) ease of use/ease to learn the telehealth program, 3) effective orientation of equipment, 4) level of perceived security/privacy utilizing telehealth and 5) problems encountered. The survey included multiple question formats including Likert scale responses, dichotomous Yes/No responses, and free text. We performed a descriptive analysis on all responses and then performed regression analysis on a subset of questions most relevant to the domains of interest. The qualitative data collected through open ended responses was analyzed to determine relevant categories. Intervention participants who completed the study received the survey at the 6-week study endpoint.ResultsSixty six percent of respondents completed the survey. The majority of women found the technology fit easily into their lifestyle. Privacy concerns were minimal and factors that influenced this included age, BMI, marital status, and readmissions. 95% of women preferred remote care for postpartum follow-up, in which hypertensive type, medication use and ethnicity were found to be significant factors in influencing location of follow-up. Most women were satisfied with the devices, but rates varied by hypertensive type, infant discharge rates and BMI.ConclusionsPostpartum women perceived the telehealth remote intervention was a safe, easy to use method that represented an acceptable burden of care and an overall satisfying method for postpartum blood pressure monitoring.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov identification number: NCT03111095 Date of registration: April 12, 2017.

Project description: INTRODUCTION: Published data on hypertension incidence and management in Anderson-Fabry disease are scant and the contribution of elevated blood pressure to organ damage is not well recognized.AimTherefore, we have assessed blood pressure values and their possible correlations with clinical findings in a well described cohort of Fabry patients.MethodsBetween January 2015 and May 2019, all adult Fabry patients (n = 24 females, n = 8 males) referred to our institute were prospectively enrolled. During the first examination patient's genotype and clinical characteristics were recorded. Blood pressure data were obtained by standard observed office measurements followed, within 6 months, by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and home self-recordings. Organ involvement, including kidneys, heart and brain, was monitored over time. Consequently, patients were defined as clinically stable or progressive through the Fabry Stabilization Index.ResultsThe standard office measurements have diagnosed hypertension in three (9.37%) patients, but the ambulatory monitoring showed elevated blood pressure in six (18.75%) patients, revealing three cases of masked hypertension. All the hypertensive patients were females and, compared with normotensive subjects, they presented a lower glomerular filtration rate (p < 0.05) and a more advanced cardiac hypertrophy (p < 0.05). Four (66.7%) of them were diagnosed with a progressive form of the disease through the Fabry Stabilization Index while the majority of the normotensive group (84.6%, n = 19) was stable over time. No correlation was found between the prevalence of hypertension and the type of mutations causing Fabry disease.ConclusionHypertension can be found in a restricted portion of clinically stable Fabry patients. In contrast, patients presenting with a progressive organ involvement, particularly renal impairment, have a major risk of developing uncontrolled blood pressure, and should be followed carefully. Moreover, the ambulatory blood pressure monitoring proved to be useful to reveal masked hypertension, which can contribute to the progressive worsening of the organ damage. Therefore, a proper diagnosis and therapy of hypertension may improve the outcome of Fabry patients.

Project description:Measuring blood pressure (BP) at home and remote monitoring can improve the patient's adherence to BP control and vascular outcomes. This study evaluated the feasibility of a trial regarding the effects of an intensive mobile BP management strategy versus usual care in acute ischemic stroke patients. A feasibility-testing, randomized, open-labeled controlled trial was conducted. Remote BP measurement, data transmission, storage, and centralized monitoring system were organized through a Bluetooth-equipped sphygmomanometer paired to the participants' smartphones. Participants were randomized equally into intensive management (behavioral intensification to measure BP at home by texting, direct telephone call, or breakthrough visit) and control (usual care) groups. The primary feasibility outcomes were: 1) recruitment time for the pre-specified number of participants, 2) retention of participants, 3) frequency of breakthrough visit calls, 4) response to breakthrough visit call, and 5) proportions satisfying BP measurement criteria. Sixty participants were randomly assigned to the intensive management (n = 31) and control (n = 29) groups, of which 57 participants were included in the primary analysis with comparable baseline characteristics. Recruitment time from the first to the last participant was 350 days, and 95% of randomized participants completed the final visit (intensive, 94%; control, 98%). Eight breakthrough visit calls were made to 7 participants (23%), with complete and immediate responses within 3 ± 4 days. The median of half-day blocks fulfilling the BP measurement criteria per patient were 91% in the intensive group and 83% in the control group (difference, 12.2; 95% confidence interval, 2.2-22.2). No adverse events related to the trial procedures were reported. The intensive monitoring, including remote BP measurement, data transfer, and centralized monitoring system, engaged with behavioral intensification was feasible if the patients complied with the intervention. However, the device utilized would need further improvement prior to a large trial.