{"id":3276,"date":"2012-07-10T16:04:46","date_gmt":"2012-07-10T20:04:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.healthit.gov\/buzz-blog\/?p=3276"},"modified":"2026-01-06T02:06:05","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T02:06:05","slug":"telemonitoring-wny-beacon-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthit.gov\/blog\/insights-updates\/telemonitoring-wny-beacon-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Using Telemonitoring for Preventative Diabetes Care in the Western New York Beacon Community"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

According to the New York State Department of Health<\/a>, diabetes affects one out of every 12 adult New Yorkers. The number of diabetics in New York State has more than doubled since 1994 and that number could double again by 2050. Western New York, which includes Buffalo and eight counties ranging from urban to suburban and rural, has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the country with approximately 150,000 diabetic patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Western New York Beacon Community<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Western New York (WNY) Beacon Community<\/a> is one of 17 ONC-funded Beacon Communities building and strengthening local health IT infrastructure and testing innovative approaches to make measurable improvements in health and health care, while also  reducing costs. The WNY Beacon, made up of HEALTHeLINK, Western New York\u2019s clinical information exchange, and clinical transformation partners Catholic Medical Partners and P2<\/sup> Collaborative of Western New York, is attempting to move the needle in a positive direction for diabetes care management by focusing on preventative health through early intervention and better care coordination. The WNY Beacon launched a telemonitoring pilot last summer with a focus on high-risk diabetic patients and a goal of reducing preventable emergency room visits and future hospital re-admissions. The innovative piece of this telemonitoring pilot, as compared with others, is that it targets patients who have not recently been hospitalized, while many other similar models focus on patients who have been recently discharged. WNY Beacon is one of four Beacon Communities working with telemonitoring interventions and one of many Beacon Communities working to improve diabetes care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Telemonitoring Pilot <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Approximately 110 patients are currently participating in the WNY Beacon telemonitoring pilot. Mobile devices installed in the patient\u2019s home electronically report vital signs including blood pressure, glucose readings, and weight to health care providers through HEALTHeLINK.  The WNY Beacon believes that involving the patient in his or her own care will improve their compliance and accountability for their health. Many participating providers and their patients said that they didn\u2019t understand the impact of weight or specific foods on their diabetes until they began this daily monitoring. With this knowledge readily available, the patients participating in the pilot are able to proactively manage their diabetes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Telemonitoring Success Stories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since launching the telemonitoring pilot last summer, the WNY Beacon has a few success stories:<\/p>\n\n\n\n