Study shows remote monitoring technology improves antenatal care and reduces costs by 20%

Overview

The peer reviewed paper published in Science Direct demonstrated a significant 20% reduction in care costs for pregnant women, who are at greater risk of preeclampsia, through switching to remote monitoring using technology.

The scientific study was conducted into the work of Luscii, a remote monitoring platform and showed that the use of remote blood pressure and symptom monitoring in antenatal care for high-risk women was associated with significantly lower costs compared to conventional care.  In the remotely monitored group, costs of antenatal care, including the costs of the digital platform, were 19.7% lower compared to the control group.

Expectant mothers uploaded blood pressure readings and answered 10 quick yes or no pregnancy/hypertension-related questions once a day. Values exceeding set thresholds alerted the telemonitoring team who then discussed with the consulting obstetrician whether to further instruct participants at home or ask them to attend hospital for additional observations or follow-ups. This led to a significant reduction of antenatal visits, ultrasounds, laboratory and other diagnostic tests and hypertension-related admissions amongst participants.

Originally designed in The Netherlands and currently used in over 50% of Dutch hospitals, the technology is now being rolled out by several NHS trusts across the UK.

To read the paper, click here