A clear majority of both patients with chronic diseases and the health professionals who treat them are in favour of the remote monitoring of patients’ conditions, according to the first ever study in Spain of the practice conducted by the IESE business school and Telefonica.

Seventy per cent of chronic patients and 80 per cent of general practitioners, specialists and nurses would be willing to use such systems, should they be made available, said the study.

Researchers conducted more than 1,750 interviews with health professionals (758 of the total) and patients with chronic conditions (1,006 patients with hypertension, diabetes, heart diseases and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)).

Actual experience, however, is thin on the ground. Only between three and eleven per cent of professionals frequently administer remote monitoring systems. And only seven per cent of patients use the systems.

Yet nine out of ten professionals feel that remote monitoring can help improve quality of care by encouraging chronic patients to take responsibility for their own health and pick up on any signs that their conditions are changing. Telemedicine also reduces hospital visits, said professionals.

Meanwhile, patients said remote monitoring can save time as well as reduce hospital visits.

However, some concerns are expressed by both groups. Strikingly, a lack of patient access to technology and training is a major concern for 80 per cent of health professionals, who also point to a reduction in personal contact with their patients.

The same concern is raised by patients, although they say they are comfortable with videoconferencing as an alternative to personal contact. On average, only 16 per cent of patients said they would not use remote monitoring if it was offered to them.