A recent referral from Dr. Naimer's family practice to the Toronto Grace Remote Care Monitoring Program

I recently learned about the Toronto Grace remote monitoring program and it triggered me to think about a patient who has had more challenges living at home alone independently. The patient is a 73-year old-male who had a brachial nerve avulsion injury from a MVA many years ago, chronic pain, osteoposis, severe scoliosis and memory loss from his remote head injury.

He lives alone and was doing well for years. As he ages, his family has been more concerned with his forgetfulness and unsteadiness on his feet. He had a recent fall and fractured his arm. He forgets to take his medications and forgets about appointments. I heard about the remote monitoring program and referred him with the easy fillable referral form on the Toronto Grace website. Within days I received notice he was accepted into the program.

The program provided him with a personal alert device he wears with access to call centre assistance anywhere in Canada with the push of a button 24/7. The device will alert the centre of falls, has location awareness through GPS and geo notifications can be set up if he moves outside his familiar surroundings. A call out hierarchy is in place to reach his family if needed. He has an alarm system through his phone and a medication dispensing machine where he presses a button and his meds for that time of day are dispensed. His family and the patient feel so much better knowing that there is support available 24/7 with the press of a button and reminders for medications. He is able to continue to live independently at home given his increased frailty.

About the Remote Care Monitoring Program

Who are we?
Toronto Grace Health Centre (TGHC), in partnership with GRTHealth, is offering  RCM program, free of charge,  to primary care. The program operates across the GTA and beyond. RCM provides medical and non-medical monitoring to support the ability for vulnerable individuals to remain safely at home. Examples of vital signs and in-home issues Include: (e.g. slips and falls, off-premises wandering, risks for pressure sores, whether your patient is getting daily nutrition etc.), as well as challenges with Activities of Daily Living, such as issues with medication compliance. 

What do we do?
Safety alerts are sent to the program’s 24/7 call centre (via RCM technologies). The service ensures that all concerns are escalated to the appropriate service provider and/or caregiver. To promote service integration, the RCM program prioritizes active care coordination with other service providers. In addition, the RCM program offers access to the following TGHC specialists: Geriatrician, Respirologist, Pulmonary Rehab, Rheumatologist, Chiropodist, and Internal Medicine Support.

How to refer?
Referrals are done electronically and can be made on the TGHC website. The program is government funded and there is no cost to the client.