scholarly journals Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Telemedicine in the Management of Cardiovascular Diseases in Primary Health Care in Cameroon: An Interventional Study

Author(s):  
Georges Bediang ◽  
Chris Nadège Nganou-Gnindjio ◽  
Yannick Kamga ◽  
Fred-Cyrille Goethe Doualla ◽  
Cheick Oumar Bagayoko ◽  
...  

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of tele-expertise (tele-ECG) in primary health care in Cameroon for the management of patients with cardiovascular diseases or risk factors. Method: It is a controlled multicenter study carried out in Cameroon’s two health facilities where tele-ECG has been implemented (intervention centers) and two other where telemedicine has been not implemented (control centers). Patients having cardiovascular risk factors or diseases received usual primary health care in the control centers. In contrast, they received usual primary health care and could perform an ECG associated with cardiologists’ remote expertise (tele-ECG) in the intervention centers. The primary outcome was to evaluate the rate of patients’ access to an ECG test and to cardiologist’ expertise. Results and Discussion: Telemedicine is effective for the management of patients with cardiovascular diseases in primary health care. It could improve healthcare providers’ clinical processes, clinical outcomes of patients and their satisfaction.

2002 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 224-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Cederholm ◽  
Peter M. Nilsson ◽  
Carl-Peter Anderberg ◽  
Lars Fröberg ◽  
Ulla Petersson

2012 ◽  
Vol 153 (39) ◽  
pp. 1536-1546 ◽  
Author(s):  
István Ilyés ◽  
Zoltán Jancsó ◽  
Attila Simay

Although an impressive progress has been achieved in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, they are at the top of the mortality statistics in Hungary. Prevention of these diseases is an essential task of the primary health care. Cardiovascular prevention is carried out at primary, secondary and tertiary levels using risk group and population preventive strategies. The two main tasks of primary cardiovascular prevention are health promotion and cardiovascular disease prevention, and its main programs are ensuring healthy nutrition, improving physical training and accomplishing an anti-smoking program. The essential form of secondary prevention is the screening activity of the primary health care. The majority of cardiovascular risk factors can be discovered during the doctor–patient consultation, but laboratory screening is needed for assessing metabolic risks. The official screening rules of the cardiovascular risk factors and diseases are based on diagnostic criteria of the metabolic syndrome; however, nowadays revealing of global cardiometabolic risks is also necessary. In patients without cardiovascular diseases but with risk factors, a cardiovascular risk estimation has to be performed. In primary care, there is a possibility for long term follow-up and continuous care of patients with chronic diseases, which is the main form of the tertiary prevention. In patients with cardiovascular diseases, ranking to cardiovascular risk groups is a very important task since target values of continuous care depend on which risk group they belong to. The methods used during continuous care are lifestyle therapy, specific pharmacotherapy and organ protection with drugs. Combined health education and counselling is the next element of the primary health care prevention; it is a tool that helps primary, secondary and tertiary prevention. Changes needed for improving cardiovascular prevention in primary care are the following: appropriate evaluation of primary prevention, health education and counselling, renewal of the cardiovascular screening system based on the notion of global cardiometabolic risk, creating a unified cardiovascular prevention guideline, and operating primary care cardiovascular prevention within the framework of an integrated prevention system. Orv. Hetil., 2012, 153, 1536–1546.


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