Any new medical technology that improves patient outcomes and reduces service costs is a win. The FDA recently approved Class II clearance for Current Health‘s artificial intelligence-powered continuous, real-time wireless remote patient monitoring (RPM) and telehealth. The FDA clearance is for post-acute care in the hospital or at home. According to the company, the all-in-one wearable tracks more vital signs with ICU-level accuracy than any other device.
The Current platform includes an upper arm wearable along with a tablet that includes a chatbot set up to answer questions, issue medication reminders, and provide educational content. The chatbot has more than 100 pre-defined disease “pathways” to recognize and communicate with patients about their vital signs and symptoms. The system also uses secure text messaging and video calling to connect patients with their care teams.
In some respects, Current Health is an information aggregator. The wearable is both a monitor and a hub that collects and sends data from multiple integrated devices. For example, if the system determines that a blood pressure reading is necessary, it will prompt the patient on a mobile device with “Submit blood pressure reading. You’ll need your Omron Cuff.”
The Current Health system maximizes patient compliance because it accesses information about the devices patients own or to which they have easy access. By monitoring patient vital signs through a single Current Health dashboard on desktop computers or mobile devices, healthcare teams can more easily identify at-risk patients.
Current Health presently focuses on working with medical care providers to reduce readmissions and preventable deaths. The company’s next challenge is to use AI to predict illness and health issues ahead of time, even before patients know they need to call a doctor.
