Home Pediatric Critical Care Intervention to Reduce Hospitalization

描述（由申请人提供）：Advanced Medical Electronics Corporation （AME）提议为肺科医生和呼吸治疗师开发一种工具，专门设计用于家庭呼吸机依赖儿童患者的护理。依赖技术的慢性病儿童代表了一个广泛的患者群体，他们比一般人群更容易受到急性、危及生命的疾病的影响。在患重病后，儿童需要专门护理，以促进在不妨碍社会和心理发展的情况下恢复和康复。早期干预可以减轻病情发展到更严重的程度，可能需要在儿科重症监护病房（PICU）住院治疗。然而，干预策略已经混淆了需要频繁的评估，通过身体检查在一个相对固定的患者群体。目前，即使评估也经常需要进入PICU或至少在门诊环境中进行评估，因为患者暴露于各种感染性病原体。考虑到支持这些儿童所需的特殊监测设备和技术，护理人员对前往诊所进行评估的担忧是适当的。技术的可用性使家庭护理提供者与主治肺病学家和呼吸治疗师之间有效、及时和可靠的信息传递可能会减少运输和住院的需要，并为家庭护理提供者和最终为儿童提供显著提高的舒适水平。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Advanced Medical Electronics Corporation (AME) proposes to develop a tool for pulmonologists and respiratory therapists specifically designed for the care of home ventilator-dependent pediatric patients. Technology-dependent, chronically ill children represent a broad population of patients that are more frequently affected by acute, life-threatening illness than the general population. Following a critical illness, children require specialized care to facilitate recovery and rehabilitation that does not impede social and psychological development. Early intervention may mitigate against the development of more severe illness that would likely require inpatient hospital care in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). However, intervention strategies have been confounded by the need for frequent assessment via physical exam in a relatively immobile patient population. At present, even evaluation frequently requires admission to a PICU or at a minimum, evaluation in an outpatient setting wherein patients are exposed to a wide array of infectious pathogens. Given the special monitoring equipment and the technology required to support these children, caregivers are appropriately concerned about traveling to a clinic for an assessment. The availability of technology that enables effective, timely, and reliable information transfer between the homecare providers and the attending pulmonologists and respiratory therapists is likely to decrease the need for transport and hospitalization, and provide a dramatically increased level of comfort for care providers in the home and ultimately the children. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Technology-dependent, chronically ill children are more frequently affected by acute, life-threatening illness than the general population and will benefit from tools that minimize the likelihood of required transportation events. Early intervention may mitigate against the development of more severe illness that would likely require inpatient hospital care in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).