Background: ‘SHL-Telemedicine’ (former ‘Shahal’) is a telemedical facility that provides professional care to subscribers who contact its monitor center by telephone, transmit their real‑time electrocardiograms (ECGs) telephonically and describe their symptoms to a specially trained registered nurse, whereupon therapeutic measures are decided upon by the professional staff. Patients’ data are stored in a central computer for instant access, and mobile intensive care units (MICUs) are dispatched when necessary. The system monitors blood pressure, pulmonary peak flow, and selected parameters for congestive heart failure (CHF). The 'Telemarker' for measuring cardiac markers at home was introduced in 2008.
Objectives: To summarize ‘SHL-Telemedicine's activities during 26 years of community service.
Methods: Retrospective analysis of ‘SHL-Telemedicine’s and subscribers’ data.
Results: There are currently ~60,000 subscribers whose ages range from 15-102 years. Since 1987, the service has handled 5,999,504 calls and ECG transmissions: solely telephonic medical assistance was required by 87% of the callers and an MICU was dispatched for the rest, of whom 41% were taken to hospital (most of the latter were hospitalized for >24 hours). ‘SHL-Telemedicine” was involved in 2,211 out‑of‑hospital resuscitations, and 290 (13.12%) of those patients survived to hospital discharge. A blood pressure program (‘Telepress’) was initiated in 1995 and >1,750,000 readings were automatically transmitted to the monitor center. ‘SHL-Telemedicine’s CHF program led to > 40% reduction of hospitalizations and improved the quality of life of > 850 CHF patients who completed a 1-year follow-up.
Conclusions: ‘SHL-Telemedicine’s provision of medical assistance may bestow a valuable cost-cutting benefit on national medical resources in these times of escalating expenses and decreasing resources.
