Senior Trends – Telehealth and Aging in Place

As a percentage of the U.S. population, seniors are soon projected to outnumber younger people. The year 2030 will place an important flag in our demographic growth patterns, according to the U.S. Census. Trends show that the baby boomer population will all surpass age 65 by that year, and one in five Americans will be retirement age. For the first time in U.S. history, older people will outnumber children in the U.S. This phenomenon will place unprecedented pressures on the American system of medical care. Studies show that this population will more than double from 2016 to 2060. Predictions are that 98 million Americans will be over the age of 64 by that time and demand for healthcare will increase by 200%.

The rising population of seniors who are also living longer and with more chronic diseases will exacerbate the shortage of clinical providers. As healthcare leaders and government officials struggle to determine their next round of strategies to respond to these pressing issues, there is one technology poised to help stretch our thinning healthcare safety net. Telehealth holds real potential to help American’s elderly populations retain their independence while still receiving care for chronic conditions such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes, or heart disease.

Here’s how telemedicine can help seniors “age in place” and why it should be an imperative for any age-friendly healthcare provider.

“As the American population ages, our health care delivery system must embrace significant changes in payment strategies, as well as value-based service provision, to meet the demands of this demographic shift.”

Health Affairs

Health Affairs tackled the issue of our aging population a few years ago in an article designed to help healthcare providers carve out strategic shifts in front and back-end care delivery mechanisms in order to meet the demands of these demographic challenges.

The article detailed the efforts of The John A. Hartford Foundation to redefine our overarching healthcare mission to respond to the needs of these populations. The goal of the initiative is to set metrics for healthcare providers seeking to respond to a growing elderly population. They recommend:

• Providing care that aligns with the senior’s goals.
• Enhances physical function and independence.
• Manages symptoms effectively.
• Recognizes the needs of caregivers.
• Seamlessly provides coordination between providers and healthcare settings.

Telehealth meets all these requirements for an age-friendly healthcare delivery model, allowing for a cost-effective and outcomes-driven patient encounter by simply replacing the in-person office visit with the virtual house call.

The Pew Research Center says Americans over age 65 want to age in place. This is an important consideration for any healthcare provider interested in meeting the needs, wants, and priorities of this demographic. Telehealth, which facilitates a clinical encounter via digital technologies, is the perfect tool to help senior patients age in place.

Telehealth can be used in a variety of ways to support senior independence. For example:

• Care coordination and continuity between providers or between providers, patients, and their caregivers is facilitated through the use of live stream real-time video transmitted by smartphone, desktop, laptop, or tablet.
• Symptom management of chronic diseases is easier when patient monitoring of vitals or other metrics occurs via a smartphone tracker.
• Improved care delivery is guaranteed with the use of remote monitoring tools that collect patient data from the comfort of their favorite couch, enhancing care delivery and quality outcomes.

Telehealth improves doctor-patient communication, while actually increasing a patient’s access to care. This is a particularly important point; at a time when our safety net is increasingly diminished by the sheer weight of patient populations, digital technology offers a way to expand care. Telemedicine can reduce travel costs and eliminate the time spent waiting tor treatment.

Telemedicine is highly convenient for elderly patients that may struggle to drive to a traditional office visit. It can also bring caregivers and educators or other resources directly into the patient’s home so that the elderly can retain their ties to the community even at an advanced age.

While these populations are living longer, they also have more chronic diseases that require ongoing clinical support:

• 40% of Americans aged 65-74 are obese; these numbers are increasing.
• Alzheimer’s is expected to expand to more than 14 million people by 2050.
• CVS Health says that chronic pain and depression are two of the most prevalent conditions in today’s senior populations.
• Today, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) says that six in 10 adults in the U.S. have a chronic disease.

Numerous clinical studies show that telemedicine has been effective for monitoring patient metrics in those suffering from these debilitating disorders.

With that said, it’s also important to understand that telehealth tools are designed to enhance existing traditional care delivery models, not replace them.

It should be noted that telemedicine is just as effective for specialty care as primary care treatment. While there are pros and cons to the use of telemedicine for specialty care, there are numerous studies showing the efficacy of telehealth for:

• Post-surgical routine wound checks are particularly effective when the elderly patient lacks mobility.
• Psychiatry and counseling for the depressed shut-in senior can reconnect them to the world outside.
• COPD or diabetes patients can receive patient education or routine monitoring from the comfort of their home.
• Rural communities benefit highly when telehealth brings the expertise of a difficult-to-find specialist directly into the community hospital.

But the benefits of telehealth extend beyond the patients to the community, payers, employers, and even clinicians who are struggling to find work-life balance.

American’s elderly populations want to retain their independence. CVS Health conducted an opinion poll recently that showed access, affordability, and autonomy is crucial to this population. Managing hypertension, diabetes, joint replacement, chronic pain, or other long-term care variables can be facilitated through the use of telehealth technology.

OrthoLive believes that the future of healthcare, particularly in the challenging times that lie ahead, is in telehealth. We offer a HIPAA-compliant telehealth model for orthopedists that helps them respond to the needs of not only their elderly patients – but all patients in their practice. Call now.