Patient Outcomes Associated with the First Remote Monitoring Experience of Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices in South Korea

PURPOSE: Remote monitoring of cardiac devices reduces unnecessary outpatient visits and increases patient satisfaction. We aimed to evaluate remote monitoring in terms of patient satisfaction, economic efficiency, and safety. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a single university hospital survey. The time/medical cost efficacy and satisfaction index were evaluated using a questionnaire to investigate patient satisfaction before and after remote monitoring in patients using Biotronik implantable cardiac devices. The questionnaire was adopted and modified from Hwang’s 2020 Survey on Telehealth Patient Experience. RESULTS: Remote monitoring was associated with a decrease in total outpatient visits. Of 1270 remote monitoring-related alerts clinicians received during the study period, more than 95% were from patients with pacemakers. Still, the severity of alerts was higher for implantable cardioverter defibrillators and cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillators. The post-RM survey results demonstrated that patients were generally satisfied with RM, perceived it as cost-effective, and found that RM facilitated health management without disrupting their daily routines. CONCLUSION: The study participants were satisfied with their first remote monitoring experience and reported having time- and cost-savings by using remote monitoring. Remote monitoring-related alerts from high-voltage devices were more severe and required medical intervention.