Everything You Should Know About Developing an RPM Solution

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Remote patient monitoring technology is a key factor in the major shift that is currently occurring in the US healthcare sector. RPM is a technologically advanced method of delivering care without visiting doctors’ clinics. Since technology is becoming more and more prevalent among healthcare professionals, RPM continues to develop at a faster rate. As per a recent report, the remote patient monitoring market is predicted to reach $31.326B by 2023. The increasing popularity indicates that it’s a widely accepted healthcare solution. And its demand is going to increase in the coming years.   

In 2020 alone, 88% of medical service providers invested in RPM technology. From this, one can easily predict that investments in this space could double in the next few years. Besides, this market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 21.29% from 2021 to 2028. Every statistic reveals how remote patient monitoring applications change healthcare workflows and operations.  

Today, healthcare organizations are actively adopting remote patient monitoring telehealth technologies or integrating them with practice management solutions. For successful remote patient monitoring software development, providers can adopt some of the best practices and include advanced features. Ensuring these guarantees a remote patient monitoring system that helps medical practices reduce hospitalizations, manage CCM cases, improve patient outcomes, educate and support patients, and so on. Further, healthcare facilities can also invest in developing robust remote patient monitoring apps or integrating RPM solutions with wearables devices or sensors.

Implementing RPM solutions is quite simple today if providers use the best practices and include the latest features. Here’s a comprehensive guide on developing RPM solutions that you can follow. This guide will help you develop and implement cutting-edge RPM applications to boost operations, clinical care, and revenue.

The pandemic has widened the care boundaries to a great extent, allowing health innovators to bring new technologies into this care industry. Take, for example, EHR systems for health records storage, healthcare cloud computing to access and control crucial health data from anywhere, and so on. One such technology that is currently at its peak is Remote Patient Monitoring.   

In the simplest terms, remote patient monitoring is caring for individuals remotely, more precisely from the comforts of their homes. Imagine a patient who had bariatric surgery. The provider must give follow-up care, but visiting the hospital for the patient is highly risky. In such a case, using RPM health technologies can prove helpful. With a wearable or RPM telehealth app, clinicians can effectively monitor the vitals and provide the patient with the necessary follow-up care. Leveraging this remote patient monitoring and telehealthcare, patients can remain at home and recover faster. Moreover, providers can save overhead expenses, reduce readmissions, improve care outcomes, and increase patient satisfaction.  

Looking back at the history of remote patient monitoring technology, we’ll understand it’s been there for many years. RPM devices like glucose or digital blood pressure monitors have been used for over a decade. But what’s new is the next-generation RPM systems that alert users if health vitals exceed the normal range or indicate any degeneration of conditions. And these elements helped providers and patients during the pandemic. RPM technology enabled patients to monitor their conditions at home, minimizing risks of acquiring infections during clinic visits and so on. With minimum hospital visits or early discharges, healthcare organizations save money.   

Despite a myriad of benefits, one thing is sure RPM technology doesn’t eliminate human-to-human interactions. It doesn’t matter how advanced the RPM system is, except for devices; it requires trained human caregivers to access and analyze the data and deliver care. However, integrating RPA can automate multiple RPM processes and reduce the doctors’ work. Like other healthcare automated solutions, RPM technology through automation can easily bridge the gap between patients’ needs and doctors’ capabilities, ultimately reducing clinical burnout. 

Moreover, the recent advancements in RPM technology are mainly related to self-care wearables or solutions. Built on the foundations of remote patient monitoring, these automated self-care RPM models expand the scope of remote healthcare. These can effectively treat larger populations and offer personalized and patient-centric care, improving patient experience.   

Automated remote care benefits patients, clinicians, caregivers, and the healthcare system as a whole by utilizing technology to provide practical and efficient care outside of conventional care delivery settings. At the fork in the road of modern healthcare, automated remote care is the path that offers an overall higher quality of care, better clinical results, and increased patient engagement. Healthcare innovators are bringing forth a new era of health and well-being for patients, care teams, and healthcare professionals by fusing precise patient health data with the capacity to offer them automated triage. And that’s the advanced remote patient monitoring technology.

Let’s start by providing some metrics to bring value. The global remote patient monitoring development market is anticipated to reach $53.6 billion (about $160 per person in the US) by the end of 2022, per the most recent Markets and Markets reports. Moreover, a CAGR of 26.7% is predicted for the market to reach $175.2B in 2027. From these stats, it’s clear that RPM technology is the future of healthcare. And every healthcare provider must consider remote patient monitoring development. What are the important causes of these strikingly good prospects? We have tried to bring out strong arguments and show that RPM systems have a promising future.  

No Going Back 

It is hardly surprising that custom remote patient monitoring software development experienced such broad adoption and spectacular growth in the wake of COVID-19 outbreaks.   

In the words of the American Hospital Association, the pandemic became a real impetus for virtual care. It was noted that a few years ago, only a few hospitals were prepared to overhaul their traditional care delivery techniques. In contrast, today, more than 48% of US healthcare organizations have committed to using RPM solutions and other cutting-edge technologies to improve their services in the future. So, there’s no looking back now. Not just remote patient monitoring and telemedicine solutions but care practices are open to adopting new technologies like AI, VR, AR, and ML. And integrate them with CMS remote patient monitoring and telehealth solutions.

Decompression of Hospital System 

The tremendous overload of hospitals and clinics worldwide is one of the pandemic’s most noticeable effects. Before the pandemic, most patients visited hospitals or clinics for their chronic and primary care. The pandemic may have changed the picture completely. By entrusting many routine checkups for patients with cardiac illnesses and other critical chronic ailments like high blood pressure, diabetes, or pneumonia to remote patient monitoring solutions, hospital systems can free up their resources using this meditech solution.  

For instance, patients can share important health parameters from the comfort of their homes via a mobile app with their doctors. And these RPM apps enable clinicians to regularly track their patients and offer a prompt response when acute care or support is required. Besides, EMR integration with remote patient monitoring apps can make the transfer of health data more seamless and secure. So, hospital healthcare management can delegate many in-patient care tasks to RPM applications, saving time and money.

Flexible Services 

According to a report by Insider Intelligence, 70.6 million Americans, which is 26.2% of the population, will use RPM tools by 2025. Well, this stat highlight that RPM technology has a bright future ahead.   

With remote patient monitoring development, patients can choose from various healthcare providers. And they can get more scalable and flexible treatment options. Hospitals can release patients early to decompress the care system and keep tabs on their health via devices and RPM telehealth apps. In addition, clinicians can better tailor their treatment plans based on more valuable, validated patient data. Using these insights, clinicians can also timely intervene in cases of acute or high risks illnesses. Such flexibility in care delivery can benefit patients and clinicians rather than overwhelm them. 

Transition to Lower Costs 

By offering effective technology for streamlining processes, cutting costs, and enabling clinics and hospitals with the next level of service, remote patient monitoring software solutions cleared the way for the sector to be reinvented.  

The remote patient monitoring reimbursement solution creates a strong framework to streamline seamless business and administrative processes for healthcare providers. And this indicates the electronic documentation is well-handled, the relevant charts are completed, and bills are prepared and even forwarded to insurers. Ensuring the completion of all these tasks without burdening clinicians or administrative staff is a major advantage to health practices. Well, this results in a reduction in expenses and creates opportunities for service expansion and long-term growth. Moreover, value-based care with RPM technologies also help patients save dollars compared to in-patient visits. On the other hand, providers get another way to generate more revenue. 

Breaking Barriers 

We must consider one more grave effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on physicians and patients. Aside from the core aspects of this severe infection, it deteriorated the cases of chronic conditions. The healthcare industry is currently witnessing a major rise in chronic illnesses. It could be due to negligence during the pandemic or side effects of Covid-19 and mutant viruses.   

Many people frequently avoid going to healthcare facilities due to crowding and fear of getting sick. As a result, doctors cannot regularly check on their patients’ health. An RPM solution may be a significant game changer in this situation since it provides patients with their homes with the same level of fidelity as hospitals. With RPM applications, providers can keep track of patients’ critical vitals and alert them when there’s even the slightest digression in the measurements. Moreover, clinicians can use RPM apps to alert patients about their medications and upcoming appointments, guide them on lifestyle changes, and educate them about new developments. Interestingly, we can see how remote patient monitoring solutions are breaking barriers in care delivery. And this reveals how it’s here to stay and transform the healthcare industry for good.

Several years ago, providers and practices preferred remote patient monitoring software solutions. However, as everyone now is using smartphones, healthcare developers brought remote patient management to users’ fingertips. That’s through mobile RPM apps. The fundamental role of a remote monitoring app is to connect a doctor and a patient so that the doctor may provide medical advice to the patient based on health data acquired by the same medical app.   

These apps typically capture health data and share that data in real time with healthcare providers using mobile devices, wearable sensors, and cloud-based technologies. RPM apps also track various health problems, including chronic disorders like diabetes or heart disease and acute conditions like post-surgery rehabilitation. Remote vital sign monitoring, medication management, patient education, and engagement are different aspects of RPM apps. With these apps, healthcare practitioners can better manage patient health, prevent complications, and enhance clinical outcomes. Moreover, patients can benefit from enhanced self-management of their health issues and increased access to care, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes and quality of life.   

Providers can consider some types of RPM apps for their patients.   

1. IoT-based Health Apps 

This is the era of smartwatches and smartphones. Every other person owns a smartwatch or some wearables or sensor-based device. Even mega tech giants like Apple have ventured into this category long back with Apple Watches. With such sensor-based devices or wearables, users can effectively monitor their vitals like blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen level in the blood, activity tracking, and more. And the data is typically visualized in an IoT-based health app. IoT patient monitoring applications collect and transmit health data from wearables, smart sensors, and health trackers to doctors or caregivers. Users can also view this data and self-manage their health. On the other hand, doctors view this data and make necessary decisions to manage patients’ health effectively.   

The IoT-based health apps market is constantly expanding owing to the high popularity of wearables and health-tracking devices. As a result, providers are mostly advised to choose hardware that is simple to connect to your RPM solution, secure and user-friendly too.  

2. Questionnaires Apps 

Today’s healthcare is heavily dependent on data. Evidence generation for clinical processes like drug development, care delivery, therapies, and so on is extremely crucial and relevant. Conducting door-to-door surveys for these is so outdated. Leveraging mobile remote patient monitoring technology for surveys is a wise move. These medical questionnaire apps that collect patient data through questions are quite popular among healthcare organizations. Moreover, developing these apps takes less effort than most IoT medical solutions because they do not require integration with sensors or other medical devices.  

Besides, some common health questionnaire apps include (PROM) patient-reported outcome measures, medical history, screening, and lifestyle questionnaire apps. While PROM apps are typically used to assess patients’ symptoms, quality of life, or functional status, medical history apps collect information about patients’ health history, like existing ailments, surgeries, and more. Similarly, screening apps enable providers to identify patients at risk of some conditions. And lifestyle questionnaire apps allow clinicians to acquire patient data about their daily routines like diet, exercise, and sleep.   

Overall, health questionnaire applications have the potential to boost patient engagement and communication, provide improved access to real-time health data, and identify patients who may require additional care or intervention.  

3. Video Conferencing Apps 

With the Covid-19 outbreak, telehealth or virtual care technology began to expand. More and more providers, patients, and even payers advocated for this virtual care solution. And gradually, for more convenience, health tech developers and innovators designed telehealth remote monitoring apps. These apps allow users to make video calls, making it possible to get a medical examination in the comfort of their homes. Despite its apparent simplicity – a standard telehealth solution looks similar to FaceTime.   

Providers and practices encouraged people to use video conferencing apps to render care services. Some of the typical features of such RPM telehealth apps include audio and video communication, recording, screen sharing, chat, and virtual backgrounds. Even though security and privacy issues are potential challenges for these apps, they offer multiple benefits also. Besides, telehealth or video conferencing app functionalities require significant backend programming.  

4. Precision Medicine Apps 

Precision medicine has recently gained interest and recognition in the healthcare industry. Owing to technological improvements, particularly mHealth app development. This has become a part of research and may collect and analyze massive amounts of data to gain a broad understanding of genomes. Precision medicine stakeholders, including patients, payers, and physicians, understand the benefits of mobile technologies (particularly mHealth/RPM apps and wearables) in improving outcomes, lowering costs, and bringing new efficiencies to treatment.   

Medical apps that collect enormous volumes of anonymized patient data for research purposes are examples of RPM apps. They can be used in precision medicine to collect data such as chronic disease symptoms, patient healthcare preferences, and pharmaceutical effects. Apple’s new health studies, unveiled with the latest Apple Watch series, are a perfect example. However, there is no connection between doctors and patients using such apps for precision medicine. Furthermore, disruptive technologies such as Artificial Intelligence play a significant role in evaluating data patterns of genetic information and medical records to verify variances and relation to disease.  

5. Education / Awareness Apps 

Remote patient monitoring isn’t just used for delivering care and educating patients. Today, patients want to be involved in their care journey and providers are making it possible differently. And educating them about their health conditions and treatments is one of the ways. Education-based apps give patients access to educational content about their ailment and how to treat it, such as articles, videos, or podcasts. Patients can also track their symptoms and provide input on how they are feeling. Healthcare practitioners could utilize this data to change treatment programs as needed. Some of the common features of the RPM and patient engagement app for educating patients include educational content, symptom tracking, personalized recommendations, medication reminders, and so on.   

Ultimately, such a remote patient monitoring app is quite a useful tool for educating patients about their medical issues and assisting them in managing their symptoms and prescriptions. These apps can help patients participate more actively in their healthcare and improve their overall health by giving them access to instructional content, tracking tools, and communication tools.  

6. Mental Health Apps 

Recently, healthcare leaders and the government have emphasized mental well-being. Technology is also advancing, with policies and services expanding in the mental and behavioral care sector. Leveraging remote patient monitoring for mental well-being and behavioral health is not new. But recent developments in mobile apps for mental healthcare are a major step in this space. Mental health apps based on RPM technology are intended to help people cope with mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, or stress with support and services. These apps frequently incorporate various features that can assist users in managing symptoms, tracking progress, and connecting with mental health specialists as needed. Many mental health apps have a mood monitoring feature that allows users to record and track their moods over time. This can aid in the identification of trends and triggers that may be related to mood swings or other symptoms.  

Besides, meditation and mindfulness activities are frequently incorporated into mental health apps to assist users in dealing with stress and anxiety. These exercises can assist in relaxing the mind and boosting emotional well-being. Another recent development is including CBT in a mobile app. CBT is a type of therapy that aims to alter harmful thought patterns and behaviors. As CBT activities assist individuals in developing new coping techniques and improving their mental health, offering this through a mobile app can greatly benefit patients. Also, it can enable therapists and psychiatrists to keep a close tab on patients undergoing CBT treatments.

7. Chronic Care Management Apps 

In the current healthcare ecosystem, there’s no shortage of chronic patients. Statistics reveal that 6 in 10 adults in the US have one chronic condition, while 4 out of 10 have two or more. With such a high prevalence, healthcare leaders and providers actively manage chronic care effectively. Like RPM solutions, there are RPM apps specific to chronic care management. These CCM applications are intended to assist people in managing long-term health disorders, including diabetes, hypertension, or heart disease. Many chronic care management apps let users track symptoms, including pain, exhaustion, and shortness of breath. Individuals can use this to detect patterns or triggers causing their symptoms and change their treatment approach accordingly.  

These apps include medication reminders, diet and nutrition tracking, and data-sharing features. Chronic patients need to take medications regularly and on time. And with medication tracker and reminder capabilities, caregivers can be stress-free as patients won’t miss a dose. In addition to medications, chronic patients need to closely monitor their diet and nutrition, which the app can handle. A CCM app is just the tool a chronic patient would need to ensure better health. 

Remote patient monitoring software development is constantly expanding. As per recent reports, this market is expected to grow from $53.6 billion in 2022 to $175.2 billion In 2027. Moreover, the number of patients using RPM tools in the US would be nearly 30 million in 2024. These statistics underline how the remote patient monitoring system development is here to stay, and the future will witness more advancements. Besides, developing an RPM system requires a specific goal, a team of experienced developers, and best practices. Despite this, the success of the RPM solution depends a lot on its key components. Incorporating the key components ensures that the RPM solution caters to the set goals and is also easy to use.   

Here are some key components you must include when developing a robust remote patient monitoring solution.

1. RPM Devices 

Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) devices are specially designed tools that collect patient health information such as heart rate, blood glucose, or oxygen levels for continuous monitoring. These devices can be integrated with various health sensors, such as wearables or implants, that help capture and transmit patient data to a central location. RPM devices help healthcare professionals provide timely patient care by monitoring vital signs in real time, even remotely.  

2. Software For Patients 

Software for Patients is a key element of remote patient monitoring (RPM) systems. Patients must always have access to the software to enter their health information, view their medical data, and get alerts and notifications. Patient software is typically created as a mobile application that uses Bluetooth technology to gather data from various medical devices, including glucometers, blood pressure monitors, and pulse oximeters. Patient software frequently includes communication tools that let users connect with their healthcare providers, fill out questionnaires, and report symptoms in addition to data collection from devices. 

3. Data Storage 

It is where all patient health data is gathered, organized, and stored for upcoming analysis and reference. The information collected by patient monitoring devices and patient-side software is typically stored centrally. Both locally and in the cloud can be used for data storage, but the scalability, accessibility, and lower risk of data loss of cloud-based solutions make them more efficient. Patient data can include a wide range of health indicators like heart rate, blood glucose level, and blood oxygen level, as well as other important information like patient demographics, medical histories, and treatment plans.

4. Software for Clinicians 

Software for clinicians is an essential part of remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions because it enables doctors and other healthcare professionals to review and analyze patient data. This software is comparable to the patient-side software, but it has extra features that help clinicians decide on patient care in an informed way.  

Around 65% to 70% of consumers, as per the survey by MSI International, expressed their willingness to engage in a remote patient monitoring program with their healthcare providers for tracking their blood pressure, heart rate, blood sugar, and blood oxygen levels.  

This software includes analytics and reporting capabilities to provide real-time data on the patient. Notifications and alerts are other key features of clinician software. Clinics can be alerted when a patient’s condition changes or exceeds a certain threshold so they can take immediate action if necessary. Decision tools are also available in clinical software, which allows clinicians to analyze patient data and make informed decisions about patient care, such as adjusting drug doses, changing treatment plans, or scheduling follow-up appointments.  

The global market for remote patient monitoring devices is projected to experience significant growth, with an expected rise from USD 30.05 billion in 2021 to USD 101.02 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 18.9%. Remote patient monitoring has become an indispensable aspect of contemporary healthcare, allowing patients’ health to be managed and tracked from a distance. Several crucial factors must be considered to ensure successful remote patient monitoring, including patient-centric user interface design, connectivity, battery and memory optimization, and adherence to security and compliance standards. These best practices are discussed in detail here.

1. Use Patient Centric User Interface 

The user experience and interface design must be carefully considered when creating a remote patient monitoring app. The usability and accessibility of the app for patients, including those with limitations, are critical to its success. It is essential to address these issues by developing a patient-centric UI/UX design.   

MSI International conducted a survey in which American patients were asked to prioritize the most important advantages of remote patient monitoring. The survey showed that convenience was valued the highest by 43% of respondents, followed by efficiency at 39%, control over personal health at 37%, greater accuracy at 36%, and peace of mind at 36%.  

Patients will be more likely to interact with the app if it is designed with them in mind. Healthcare professionals can monitor their health more effectively, improving patient outcomes. Ultimately, creating a remote patient monitoring app with a user-friendly interface is crucial in enhancing patient engagement, compliance, and general health outcomes.  

2. Offer Support to Resolve Connectivity Issues 

One of the most critical challenges in developing a remote patient monitoring application is to ensure a consistent Internet connection. Loss of connectivity can lead to loss of essential health data, which can harm the patient’s health. To fix this problem, developers should provide support for solving connection problems.  

One way to solve connection problems is to build caching mechanisms into your application. This feature ensures that all health data remains in the app until the connection is restored and the solution syncs it to the cloud. This way, even if the internet connection is interrupted, the app can continue to collect data, and no data is lost. Developers can use tools like PINCache or NSURLCache for iOS and OkHttpClient for Android or choose a platform like Firebase that supports caching.  

Another way to solve connection problems is to implement native notifications that run at specific intervals. In this way, the application is server independent. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology provides low power consumption and cost, allowing for efficient data transfer and wireless connectivity of small devices to mobile terminals, making it suitable for health monitoring applications and emergency responses. In this way, users can be alerted to changes in their health status even without an Internet connection. By providing these support measures, developers can ensure that their remote patient monitoring applications continue functioning even when connectivity issues occur. This way, patients can continue to monitor their health remotely without worrying about losing important data due to internet outages.  

3. Ensure Battery and Memory Consumption is Limited 

When developing a remote patient monitoring application, ensuring the software does not drain the smartphone’s battery and memory too quickly is vital. Patients should be able to use the app regularly without constantly charging their devices, and the app should be able to run in the background without affecting other apps. To achieve this, developers must use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technologies to connect to wearables or other fitness trackers.  

Additionally, implementing a dark mode in an app can reduce power consumption when the app is in the foreground. Developers should also ensure that the application notifies the user when the connection is lost so that the user can take appropriate action. If users, e.g., are located in an area with poor connectivity, they may need to move to a different location or use a different device to access the app.  

By focusing on battery and memory consumption, developers can create a remote monitoring app that patients can frequently use without worrying about affecting their devices. This will encourage more patients to use the app and improve their health. Additionally, by using technologies such as BLE and implementing caching mechanisms, developers can ensure that applications continue to collect health data even when the device is offline or disconnected from the Internet.  

4. Security and Compliance Strategies 

Security and compliance should always be top priorities when developing remote patient monitoring applications. Compliance with HIPAA, HL7, HFIR compliance, and FDA approval are essential requirements for any healthcare application that wants to reach patients and medical professionals. Additionally, compliance with the IEC 62304 standard is essential to integrate your application with sensors, fitness trackers, or other medical monitoring equipment. Implementing robust data encryption and authentication protocols is essential to protect patient data from unauthorized access. Finally, regular security audits and updates are required to maintain application security and compliance over time. By prioritizing security and compliance, you can ensure that your remote monitoring app is secure and reliable for all users.  

5. Set Location for Apps 

Location awareness can revolutionize remote patient monitoring applications. Adding this functionality allows applications to determine the user’s location and provide location-based services. For example, an app can ask a patient to fill out a survey if they are near a hospital, or a healthcare provider can use location data to track a patient’s movements and identify potential risk areas. Location data is also valuable in emergencies, allowing caregivers to locate and assist patients quickly.  

Developers can integrate mapping tools such as Apple Maps, Google Maps, or Mapbox to locate remote monitoring apps. These tools provide developers with powerful map and location services that can be easily integrated into their applications. In addition, developers can use the API of this mapping tool to customize their solutions for their specific needs.  

Location-aware apps also need to take data protection and security seriously. Developers must ensure that all location data is encrypted and transmitted securely to prevent unauthorized access or destruction. They must also provide patients with clear information about what data is collected and how it is used.

Remote patient monitoring app development is tricky if solution developers and providers don’t follow a planned path. Healthcare practices can develop a value-based RPM solution using best practices and creating a well-defined roadmap. 

Here’s a detailed roadmap for developing a remote patient monitoring solution. Stick to this roadmap to successfully develop and implement a patient monitoring solution. 

1. Identify and know your competitors 

Careful market research is important before starting any project or solution development. Similarly, the team must begin with market research in remote patient monitoring software development. This research will closely study and assess competitors, understand their strengths and weaknesses, learn about their customers’ reviews, and pre-define possible mistakes that can happen.   

Having this data is crucial for developers and providers to understand and comprehend the market for the solution. It will enable them to understand why users are expecting this RPM solution. Moreover, it will also help them determine the features and functionality the solution needs. Identifying your competitors and understanding their analytics is the first step toward developing a proper RPM solution.

2. Understand your users 

Software solutions can automate many tasks, but they must cater to the needs of the stakeholders. When developing an RPM solution, you must ensure that the solution must answer the stakeholders’ challenges and satisfy their needs.   

Providers, such as doctors, hospitals, or independent clinics, might implement the RPM program for specific reasons. And without having complete knowledge about these, it won’t be easy to design and develop the RPM solution. This is a crucial step in the development of RPM solutions. However, with a full understanding and knowledge of users’ needs, the RPM program easily solves their problems and enables them to deliver quality care.

3. Choose the Best Tech Stack 

Choosing the correct tech stack is critical when designing a remote patient monitoring solution. It enables you to ensure the successful delivery of a dependable and scalable product. Besides, the RPM product’s functionality, performance, and interoperability with multiple devices and platforms are all determined by its technological stack. Further, the ideal remote patient monitoring technology stack should include frameworks, libraries, and programming languages specifically intended to handle medical data securely and quickly.   

Before selecting the right tech stack for your RPM product, you must consider important factors such as security, interoperability, real-time data processing, scalability, and cloud infrastructure. These factors are quite critical, as they ensure the privacy and safety of patient’s confidential information. So, the tech stack that has strong security features like encryption, access control, and data backup would be ideal. Apart from this, other factors are also important, as interoperability and real-time data processing are quite needed now.

4. Ensure Privacy and Compliance Regulations 

Data protection and regulatory compliance are essential factors in developing remote patient monitoring solutions to preserve the privacy and security of patients’ sensitive information. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) establishes national standards for the privacy and security of medical records and personal health information for patients (PHI). And RPM solution developers must follow HIPAA rules to guarantee that PHI is securely kept, communicated, and accessed.  

Moreover, EHR data encryption is also essential to protect PHI from unauthorized access. RPM solutions can use multi-factor authentication (MFA) to verify user identities and prevent unauthorized PHI access. Users must supply two or more pieces of identity, such as a password and a biometric factor such as a fingerprint or face recognition, to use MFA. RPM solutions must also have well-defined data retention policies stipulating how long patient data should be kept and when it should be destroyed. This is necessary to ensure compliance with rules such as HIPAA and GDPR and preserve patients’ privacy. Ensuring security and regulatory compliance in RPM solutions is one of the foremost considerations. 

5. Set Excellent Design 

Design is important in developing remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions. It helps make the product simple to use and understand for patients and healthcare professionals. An RPM solution’s user interface (UI) should be created with end-users in mind, making it simple for patients to navigate and access the required information. The user interface should be simple and easy to use, with clear and concise instructions, icons, and labels.  

Further, with the growing usage of mobile devices, it’s critical that RPM solutions are responsive, allowing patients and healthcare providers to access the system from any device, including smartphones, tablets, and computers. Moreover, an RPM solution’s sitemap should be well-organized, with logical categories and clear navigation paths. Searching the system for specific information or functions must also be simple. You must include components like sync methods, accessibility, branding and visual design, and databases. Design is quite a priority for RPM solution developers, as it effectively caters to the needs of patients and providers. And it results in increased patient satisfaction and better results.

6. Include features 

Prioritizing the features that will deliver the greatest value to patients and healthcare professionals is critical. An RPM solution should contain key monitoring capabilities like vital sign tracking, medication adherence, and symptom reporting. These elements should be accurate, dependable, and simple to use, providing patients and healthcare practitioners timely and responsive information. Other than that, effective communication between patients and caregivers is also an essential feature. A well-designed and built RPM solution must consider communication features like video conferencing, telehealth visits, and secured messaging.   

Assessing and reporting patient data is critical for healthcare providers to make educated patient care decisions. An RPM solution must include data analysis tools like dashboards, reports, and alerts to enable healthcare practitioners to follow patient progress, spot patterns, and make data-driven choices. Besides, an RPM solution should prioritize security and compliance features like HIPAA compliance, data encryption, and multi-factor authentication to secure patient information and maintain regulatory compliance.

7. Test and Implement 

Once your development process is done, begin with the testing process. The earlier you begin testing while designing software, the better the result. Early testing enables developers to detect and resolve issues before they become more difficult and expensive. Early testing of patient monitoring features in the case of an RPM system helps ensure accuracy and dependability. The testing process must continue even after the RPM solution is released. Continuous testing is a must for all post-release changes and modernizations.  

Testing process automation can streamline the testing workflows and ensure that all features are adequately assessed. This comprises functional, performance, security, and user experience testing. Automated testing can also discover problems early on, allowing developers to address them before the product is released. Other than that, you must also consider user acceptance testing and security testing to ensure the solution is functioning well. 

The healthcare industry is evolving unprecedentedly, with technological advancements leading the way. The widespread use of mobile devices has transformed how people access healthcare services. According to the GSMA Intelligence, 5.27 billion unique mobile phone users worldwide are projected to increase even further. With more people turning to their smartphones for various tasks, the potential for health monitoring apps to play a significant role in healthcare delivery is significant.  

One type of health monitoring app gaining traction recently is remote patient monitoring (RPM) software. This technology has become a high priority for healthcare organizations, with about 20% of US hospitals and clinics having already adopted RPM technology and 23% planning to do so within the next year. Custom RPM software can further improve healthcare processes and address the specific needs of healthcare providers. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has also accelerated the adoption of digital technologies in healthcare, with telehealth usage rapidly accelerating. According to a report by McKinsey, the number of health monitoring app users in the US rose from 11% in 2019 to 46% due to Covid-19. The report notes how digital technology is deeply entering the healthcare arena, with more and more healthcare providers embracing the benefits of technology in providing care.  

Custom RPM software can improve healthcare processes by providing customized solutions for a healthcare provider’s specific needs. This can help improve the quality of care, reduce readmissions, provide easy access to information, optimize operational costs, and increase patient convenience.  

The benefits of custom RPM software for healthcare providers and patients are extensive. Custom RPM software can enhance patients’ quality of care, reduce readmissions, and improve treatment adherence. Additionally, it can help healthcare providers optimize operational expenses, while also increasing convenience and providing more efficient access to information.  

In the following sections, we will explore these benefits in more detail, exploring how custom RPM software can improve healthcare processes and outcomes for healthcare providers and patients.

Enhanced Quality of Care through Custom RPM Software 

One of the main benefits of custom RPM software is that it can improve the quality of care. RPM devices such as sensors, trackers, and wearables can monitor a patient’s physical activity, blood pressure, blood sugar, oxygen saturation, and other vital signs around the clock. This makes patients more aware of their health, which is particularly useful for the elderly and chronically ill.  

Customized RPM software allows healthcare providers to tailor monitoring to specific patient populations, conditions, and treatments. For example, a customized RPM software solution for people with diabetes might include blood sugar monitoring, medication reminders, and abnormal alerts.

Reducing Readmissions with Custom RPM Software 

In addition, RPM devices can significantly reduce hospital readmissions as they allow doctors to monitor patients even after discharge. Customized RPM software can provide tailored solutions for specific patient populations to improve monitoring accuracy and prevent readmissions. For example, it can give heart failure patients personalized alerts, remind them to weigh themselves every day and alert doctors if their weight fluctuates outside a certain range. This helps prevent heart failure patients from being readmitted to the hospital, one of the most common reasons for readmissions in the United States.  

Convenient Access to Information with Custom RPM Software 

Custom RPM software also provides easy access to information. Remote monitoring apps can be integrated into hospital beds at home and in clinics, and customized RPM software can provide customized solutions for a healthcare provider’s specific needs. With this technology, data collection and analysis take place in the background and are automatically uploaded to the electronic health record (EHR) system. Custom RPM software can provide healthcare providers with customized dashboards to access real-time data that helps make more informed decisions and improve treatment effectiveness. Additionally, nurses and medical staff can use bedside monitors to quickly view basic patient health data.  

Optimizing Operational Expenses with Custom RPM Software 

Another advantage of custom RPM software is that it optimizes operating expenses. Reducing the cost of emergency room visits and readmissions is a significant driver of investment in RPM. Customized RPM software can provide solutions tailored to the needs of specific healthcare providers, helping them optimize operating expenses. For example, it could provide chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with personalized alerts to remind them to take their medication and alert doctors when lung function is deteriorating. This can help COPD patients avoid expensive hospitalizations.

Increasing Convenience with Custom RPM Software 

In addition, customized RPM software can increase patient comfort. Most people don’t like going to the hospital, and custom RPM software can provide customized solutions for specific patient populations for added convenience. Healthcare facilities offering RPM devices can increase patient satisfaction because they feel uncomfortable going to the doctor whenever they have minor symptoms. For example, customized RPM software can provide hypertensive patients personalized alerts, reminding them to take their medication and alerting their doctors if their blood pressure is out of target range. It helps prevent hospitalization for patients with high blood pressure, a common cause of hospitalization in the United States.

Improving Treatment Adherence through Custom RPM Software 

Finally, customized RPM software can improve treatment compliance. Adherence to prescribed medications and treatments can improve chronic disease management and clinical outcomes. Customized RPM software can provide tailored solutions for specific patient populations to improve treatment adherence. For example, it could provide depressed patients personalized medication reminders, reminding them to take their medication and alerting clinicians if they miss a dose. 

RPM is more than just algorithms. It delivers quick responsive care while also lowering prices and operating expenses. It significantly contributes to people’s health by preventing difficult situations and serious diseases. And it’s just the right digital tool that any hospital or practitioner would require in care delivery.   

Developing a successful remote patient monitoring program may differ depending on your facility’s state of technology integration within your healthcare system. The time it takes to implement this program completely will depend on your budget and the rate at which your patients and medical staff adapt to the new technology tools employed in the program.  

Hence, when developing a remote patient monitoring system from the ground up, you should pay special attention to critical factors such as data confidentiality and accuracy and robust EMR integration options. Then you can follow our wise suggestions for a successful delivery. And place special emphasis on selecting a trustworthy custom software development partner. The correct partner can help ensure the smooth and efficient implementation of the RPM program while also providing essential experience and support throughout the development process. Ultimately, by prioritizing these elements and collaborating with the right software development business, healthcare providers can realize the full potential of RPM technology and provide greater patient care while improving operational efficiency and saving costs.

References  

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