In the world of digital healthcare, remote patient monitoring (RPM) has quickly emerged as one of the most effective tools for improving patient care. By one estimate, 30 million Americans will be using RPM devices by 2024. By 2027, the global market will reach $1.7 billion. Covid-19 was an eye-opener in terms of technology, forcing us to look at the advancements being made in telehealth and telemedicine. If we can order pad thai via a mobile app and manage to work remotely across the world, why can’t we have that with healthcare? Why do patients have to sit for so many hours inside an emergency room before they can see a doctor?
By enabling physicians to remotely monitor patients’ health data in real-time, RPM offers a range of advantages that can improve quality assurance (QA) and safety in medical settings. However, with these advantages also comes the need for a robust QA strategy as well to ensure its effectiveness.
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Unprecedented growth and challenges
The growth of RPM post-pandemic is undeniable. The increasing number of devices, active users, and healthcare institutions embracing this approach highlight its significance. However, with growth comes complexity. The RPM ecosystem involves multiple stakeholders: device vendors, payers, providers, and patients. Crafting a comprehensive QA strategy that caters to the differing needs of these sectors is crucial for delivering a good patient experience.
Device vendors must grapple with issues like device availability, connectivity, and usability. Healthcare payers and providers face the uphill task of ensuring the accuracy, reliability, and security of patient data while adhering to regulatory compliance such as interoperability and FDA approvals. Patients’ concerns encompass training, affordability, and adaptability.
Strategies for effective quality assurance
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Successful QA strategies in RPM incorporate the following key elements to ensure seamless operations, reliability, and security:
- Shift left and continuous testing: By adopting an early testing approach and integrating continuous testing practices, organizations can nip potential issues in the bud and streamline their development pipelines.
- AI for QA and QA for AI: With AI-infused components in RPM devices, it’s important to validate both the AI algorithms themselves and their interaction with the overall software application.
- Performance and scalability testing: As data storage largely moves to the cloud, validating the system’s performance and scalability becomes paramount.
- Security and privacy testing: Ensuring strong security measures at both device and application levels is essential. Ethical hacking techniques and penetration testing can uncover vulnerabilities.
- Regulatory compliance and cloud assurance: Organizations must adhere to stringent healthcare regulations. A solid cloud assurance strategy is essential for safeguarding sensitive patient data stored on the cloud.
- User experience (UX) testing: As RPM devices cater to a wide range of users, comprehensive UX testing becomes pivotal to ensuring ease of use and engagement.
- Data integrity and privacy: In the era of AI, validating diagnostic and predictive algorithms is critical. Techniques like AI-driven analytics and user feedback loops can enhance algorithm accuracy and performance.
- Tailored QA: Different usage scenarios demand tailored QA strategies. Integrating AI-driven QA and considering various usage contexts ensures reliability across diverse scenarios, such as in-home care or remote locations.
- Long-term reliability and maintenance: QA efforts must extend beyond the initial stages to ensure the long-term reliability and maintenance of devices and platforms, especially in remote or inaccessible areas.
Addressing amplified cybersecurity concerns
Cybersecurity concerns are a big source of debate in the healthcare industry, particularly when it comes to safeguarding patient data within remote patient monitoring systems. This particular challenge is multifaceted, encompassing the protection of both Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and Personal Health Information (PHI). Complicating matters further are the incredibly complicated regulatory requirements in the United States, such as HIPAA, HICP, and HC Interoperability, which impose strict mandates on health insurance companies and healthcare providers to uphold the interests of the individuals and communities they serve. To tackle these cybersecurity issues effectively, a QA strategy must be implemented to detect and solve potential vulnerabilities early in the development lifecycle.
One of the fundamental best practices in addressing these concerns is the adoption of DevSecOps principles. This entails integrating security into the software development pipeline, making security testing an integral part of in-sprint validations. Given that many of these healthcare applications are consumer-facing, it’s necessary to incorporate penetration testing techniques, such as ethical hacking, into the regular release cadence. Additionally, monitoring and tracking play pivotal roles in QA efforts.
The use of QA bots to identify common standards missing in requirements can be instrumental in ensuring that the most crucial security aspects are not overlooked. Collaboration among QA companies to share industry best practices further enhances the overall cybersecurity posture. Furthermore, failover testing is essential to validate the readiness of a system’s recovery strategy in the event of an unforeseen security breach, providing an extra layer of defense against potential data breaches.
The evolving landscape of RPM
The future of RPM promises astonishing advancements. Generative AI and intelligent devices that understand individual health complexities are poised to redefine healthcare. Yet, as technology continues to infiltrate every aspect of life, concerns about privacy and security also increase. Striking a balance between technological innovation and safeguarding individual preferences and security remains important.
RPM has ushered in a new era of healthcare. However, navigating the complexities and challenges of this landscape requires a thoughtful QA strategy. By incorporating AI, staying compliant with regulations, and focusing on user experience, the healthcare industry can ensure that RPM’s promising future is one marked by reliability, security, and enhanced patient care.
Photo: SolStock, Getty Images
With more than 22 years of experience driving growth across transformational services and platforms, Jayan Sivasankaran, SVP and Healthcare Sector Head of the Americas at Qualitest, is a seasoned and diverse IT leader with a special emphasis on the healthcare industry. With a focus on Digital Engineering, Quality Engineering, and Cloud Transformation and adoption, he is well-known among client executives as a trustworthy advisor for achieving significant transformation initiatives. Jayan spent the preceding 12+ years setting up and growing Healthcare QE&A Business Unit with a particular focus on M&A Integrations and Health Plan Business Growth for a large System Integrator. Additionally, he has held a number of senior leadership positions with in the areas of sales excellence, large digital transformation projects, and P&L management in the BFS and healthcare verticals.
