Improved access to health care services has long been a subject of discussion before it was codified in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) framework in 2015, just four years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which would go on to catalyze the adoption and recognition of telehealth care and remote patient monitoring (RPM) as practical medical alternatives to in-person care. Although Remote Patient Monitoring was predominantly focused on chronic conditions earlier on, it has since evolved past chronic care and is now also used by healthcare providers and patients to monitor acute conditions and postoperative recovery, to detect irregularities and allow for timely interventions by medical experts. Beyond acute and chronic conditions, RPM has also demonstrated clear benefits in other medical spheres that previously required frequent physically and financially taxing hospital visits for high-need patient groups such as pregnant women, the elderly, and individuals receiving mental health support.
The proliferation of smart digital devices like wearables and smartphone apps, starting in the 2010s, which are now a part of our everyday lives, has played a key role in not just how we interact with the outside world, but also how we connect with and understand our own bodies using data. The collection and transmission of health data in real time, like oxygen saturation, ECG monitoring, pulse oximeters and blood pressure and blood glucose, using remote patient monitoring devices, is allowing medical care providers to gain continuous insights into patients' health and make critical, timely decisions outside the traditional clinic setting, saving the patients both time and money in the long run, especially those living with chronic conditions.