Mr. Kirkpatrick hospital roommate is John Austin.  Mr. Austin is a 45-year-old truck driver who has been admitted for exacerbation of heart failure. Mr. Austin is a long-haul truck driver, who is privately insured. Mr. Austin’s place of residence is his truck.

Mr. Kirkpatrick hospital roommate is John Austin.  Mr. Austin is a 45-year-old truck driver who has been admitted for exacerbation of heart failure. Mr. Austin is a long-haul truck driver, who is privately insured. Mr. Austin’s place of residence is his truck.

Both Mr. Kirkpatrick and Mr. Austin are going home with telehealth, consisting of a telemonitoring device that transmits weight, blood pressure, blood glucose levels and pulse oximetry to a remote telehealth nurse.  Even though the use of telehealth does not often include hands-on interaction, the goal of keeping patients out of the hospital is consistent with quality nursing practice.  Telehealth applications are designed to enhance the patient experience and improve clinical outcomes while providing care for patients in their home environment, rather than in an institutional setting. Nurses can use telehealth in a manner that supports self-care by empowering patients, which is a central tenet of nursing practice.

Review the case scenario above and post a cohesive scholarly response that addresses the following:

·         Compare and contrast how each patient may benefit from telehealth services.

·         Identify one type of consumer health informatics to support home telemonitoring. Describe how this technology may enhance the quality and safety of telemonitoring.

·         Describe the benefit of consumer health informatics on organizations, providers, and patients in accessing and participating in healthcare decisions.

·         Evaluate the impact telehealth and consumer informatics have had on providers, clinicians, and patients.

·         Identify and describe two potential legal and/or ethical issues related to telehealth/telenursing, from the viewpoint of the nurse.