Telehealth in Primary Health Care: Analysis of Liverpool NHS Experience

This chapter describes a feasibility study that examined user experience of a telehealth system within a local area in the United Kingdom. The telehealth system was designed by Philips (called Motiva) and piloted within Liverpool National Health Service (NHS) Primary Care Trust (PCT), United Kingdom. The telehealth system operates a dual interface and real-time data transfer mechanism that allows patients to upload and monitor vital signs (e.g., weight and blood pressure) from their own homes, which are comonitored by clinicians to provide adequate intervention. The pilot project spanned a period of 6 months, and a questionnaire/interview study was conducted among the two user groups (i.e., patients and clinicians); prior to this, a pilot study was used to uncover their experiences. Questionnaire responses were recorded from 24 patients with various Long Term Conditions (LTC), and four of them were followed up for a one-to-one interview. Questionnaire and interview responses were recorded from 12 clinicians (including 7 Matrons, 3 Nurses and 2 GPs). The data analysis showed: 87.5% of patients were satisfied with the telehealth system; 87.50% received more support at home; 91.67% understood and managed their condition better, and 95.83% felt re-assured knowing that their readings were comonitored by clinicians. There are proven indications that hospital/general practitioner visits were reduced as a result. Clinicians’ results were also positive, with 85.71% expressing their satisfaction with the pilot system and telehealth technology in general. Telehealth holds great promises for improving clinical management and health care services delivery by enhancing access, quality, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.