"Observer Effect"- Remote Patient Monitoring -DailyWearForMedicine.com

 By Ramana Annamraju

Observer Reality- New Patient-centric Model by Ramana Annamraju

Observer Reality is the most puzzling and unresolved mystery in physics. The one-hundred-year-old Double slit experiment shakes the foundation of reality itself.

(https://youtu.be/hRFQd_fkzws)

 The Electrons, Protons, Neutrons are fundamental constituents of the entire matter that includes you and me. These particles act in mysterious and strange ways. One of the strangest things about them is that we do not know what the electrons are doing before observing or measuring. But they appear like magic when "You need” them. Observer (you) plays a critical role in making a reality. Electrons come to existence as it “ needed”. That became the central theme of the electronic revolution, producing an array of gadgets like Radios, Televisions, computers, iPhones, etc.. I frequently use these words, "need" or “as it needed” or observer effect, to demonstrate how powerful these concepts are, in reducing healthcare costs.

• You may be wondering what is this all anything to do with healthcare?
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•  Well .. I am one of those believers, that nature has all the solutions for complex problems. One such problem is the ever-increasing costs of healthcare. Access, Affordability, A.class ( Quality), the 3 As, became nagging and persistent problems in healthcare. We miserably failed in solving them all together at the "same time". The American healthcare system is a paradox, while costs going up the access is going down. The solution to this problem, simply the way we look and “observe” the overall, care itself, just like in the quantum world.
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• The “observer effect” is being used, by a phenomenally successful healthcare system, in the Boston area, called Iora health, designed by Dr.Rushika Fernandopulle. In recent news Iora health amassed more than 150 million dollar investments from Indian-owned firms like Premji Invest and Khosla Ventures. Here I may be coining the word the first time, the “Observer effect” to that model. 

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• Observer or Patient or Consumer are different words in the context of language but they are all one and the same in the world of healthcare.
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• You can extend this concept "Observer Effect", literally to every part of the healthcare system. If you are monitoring your health through modern sensors (health kits) that can give instant vital signs in real-time. Temperature, Blood Pressure, Blood Glucose, oxygen Saturation levels, Heart rate, lung volume capacity are at the patient’s fingertips You can connect with a Remote Patient Monitoring Platform for further evaluation, through, state of the art algorithms, with natural language processing capabilities (Voice Messaging). If you still want to talk with a healthcare professional, they are just one click away. You are meeting all your needs without putting one step outside of your home. You need a healthcare service that comes alive for you at that moment .. .If you need a doctor or nurse they can make a house call for you. That is a feature of the newly introduced Amazon Care, part of their healthcare delivery model. The observer effect says you should not be bothered about where the doctor or nurse or tech is coming from. They could be coming from huge silo structures like hospitals or mega healthcare systems or from a temple, or from your same subdivision. What is there to you, as long as, they magically appear in front of your house. 
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• Patient’s direct engagement with their own health data has a powerful impact on the patient's psyche. Humans are not easy to change their habits with doctor’s orders. By observing real-time data, patients are more likely to watch their food consumption, like eating one piece of cake than two. Health Kits create a mini doctor’s office at home. The early clinical trial data is showing, there is a drastic reduction in hospital readmission rates. At present hospital "readmissions" costs are shootings up to 27 Billion dollars per year. There is consensus among healthcare professionals, this cost can be contained by a patient’s own observation and self-adherence of their health data, through health kits.
•  Another big problem in Healthcare is non-compliance. Patients don’t take medications on time or worse skip the medications altogether. Don’t listen to doctor’s orders like eating more vegetables, reducing red meat intake. The healthcare industry struggles to control these staggering non-compliance rates. (as high as 30%) . This directly adds to the healthcare costs with unnecessary visits to ER and urgent care centers. 
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• The solution to this problem came from an unusual source, Indian computer programmers! As these young professionals leave India, in droves for better pastures, they leave behind their older parents in towns and villages. Since there is no organized system in place for healthcare, these children became remote caretakers. They, call, text, or email constantly to follow their parent’s medication regimens. A daughter calling parents has a powerful influence than a doctor’s orders. One of the best ways to solve the compliance problem is through loved ones and deploying Remote Patient Monitoring.. Thanks to Indian programmers, social engagement is part of Remote Patient Monitoring Platforms in the American healthcare system. Trump Administration announced a major overhaul in the reimbursement structure for Remote Patient Monitoring to control healthcare costs. 
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• Health is not a stand-alone independent system, it is closely intertwined with the patient’s perception and observation. Medicare and other payors are realizing, Remote Patient Monitoring plays a crucial role in reducing healthcare costs while increasing the benefits to Physicians and patients alike. It is a win-win for both patient and the doctor!
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