Max Healthcare pilots Telecardiology solution

Max Healthcare has tested portable ECG devices with embedded SIMs for faster response to emergency cases with cardiovascular issues. By Heena Jhingan

A speedy diagnosis can up the probability of averting a medical condition that could be fatal for a person suffering from acute chest pain. Max Healthcare has deployed a solution that can bridge the gap between patient care and the specialists by empowering its ambulances with a Portable ECG Device that can help in transmitting the Electro Cardio Gram (ECG)  from any location to a Cardiologist’s mobile device.

Developed by Maestros, eUNO R-10 is a pre-hospital device that helps the emergency staff that reaches the patient’s location to capture the ECG and transmit it in real time to an expert’s handset.

The service is designed around the concept of push technology. Each device comes with a GSM SIM that supports GPRS connectivity. The device is used to record the patient’s ECG and send it to the server in an encrypted form.

Every device is unique and has a PIN that is identified by the server. Using push technology, this data is then sent to a list of predefined experts, who could be using BlackBerry, iPhone or Android devices. The consultant can receive this as an e-mail, MMS or a PDF. The consultant can diagnose, write the comments and send the file back. This remotely added comment is automatically integrated with the ECG of the patient on the server.

Dr. Tamorish Kole, Head of Emergency Services, Max Healthcare, said that these devices could play an important role in handling cases of acute heart attack. He said, “We have just begun using the solution and have observed that they can play a critical role in cutting down the time taken for a patient to consult an expert.”

The best part of the solution has been the fact that it has made pre-hospital care more organized. “As soon as the specialist receives the ECG of the patient, who could be on the way to the hospital, he or she can guide the hospital staff accompanying him about the initial medication that could be given to the patient and, in the mean time, arrangements could be made to receive the patient and start treatment,” he explained.

In most cases, the concerned doctors view the ECG on their mobile devices but it can also be viewed on a computer or tablet as the server is integrated with a portal called rhythms24x7.com that doctors can log into and view the ECG as per their convenience.

These solutions are beneficial not only for super specialty hospitals like Max Healthcare’s but could also be of great use for remote healthcare projects and telemedicine. “The primary healthcare centers located in far-flung areas can be connected with the tertiary healthcare centers,” explained Kole.

At present Max is testing the solution on a hosted model but there are different models by which this service can be availed of from Maestros. Larger healthcare centers that have an established IT infrastructure might prefer to simply buy the portable ECG devices and host the solution on their own servers.

Centers that lack a substantial IT budget can avail of the service on a subscription basis and pay per ECG uploaded. The data is secured through encryption.

He added that, to begin with, Max was testing the solution with about 14 devices and that it would consider deploying similar solutions for other activities such as for blood gas analysis.

Another good thing about the solution is that the ECGs can be stored, archived and printed whenever needed.

“Since the ECG can be viewed on a digital device, there is the worry of losing it. In the case of a traditional ECG printout, the graph ink tends to get wiped off over a period of six months or more,” Kole informed.

Significantly, the solution is designed to send the ECG to as many as 20 specialists who can access the data simultaneously in real time, which will help them collaborate, discuss the treatment processes and make decisions.

heena.jhingan@expressindia.com