HealthEast Offers New Help for Heart Failure Patients


ST. PAUL, MN--(Marketwired - Mar 18, 2014) - HealthEast Care System introduces Tel-Assurance, a proactive care intervention service designed to help keep heart failure patients healthy at home.

"Congestive heart failure (CHF) patients are among the most vulnerable in terms of needing care at an emergency room or in a hospital," said Brendon Cullinan, MD, VP & Executive Medical Director Population Health, HealthEast. "This early intervention program will help keep our heart failure patients in their homes. By checking in and connecting them to their doctors early in the course of a problem, we hope to keep our patients healthier and to avoid hospital admissions. In addition to improving their health, this kind of pro-active care will reduce health care costs."

"Tel-Assurance participants report their daily health status using a phone or through a secure website. This approach provides early identification of patient deterioration or impending care problems, providing care managers with real-time information, so they can intervene before care challenges escalate," said Karen Paradiso, VP of Client Services, Pharos Innovations.

Here's how it works. In the hospital, the program is introduced to patients before they are discharged, usually by a transition coach. The transition coach provides the patient and their family a comprehensive explanation of the service and its benefits. Registration is easy and there is no charge for patients to take part in the program.

The HealthEast Tel-Assurance program is being offered in Minnesota at St. John's Hospital in Maplewood, St. Joseph Hospital in St. Paul and Woodwinds Health Campus in Woodbury. All HealthEast and Entira Medicare patients in the Community Health Network who have heart failure are eligible to take part in program. For more information about Tel-Assurance, contact HealthEast Care System at (651) 326-2273

About HealthEast: HealthEast is an integrated, non-profit health care organization of Minnesota's top-rated hospitals, clinics, outpatient services, home care, transportation and other holistic health services, which has a rich history of caring for generations of families in the Twin Cities East Metro for more than a century and is focused on optimal health and well-being for our patients, our communities and ourselves.

About Pharos Innovations: Pharos Innovations is a provider of scalable, data-driven and cost effective patient engagement and care monitoring solutions. Founded in 1996 by a Johns Hopkins trained physician, Pharos Innovations assists health care clients in engaging patients in their daily self-care.

Contact Information:

CONTACT
Jodi Ritacca
HealthEast Communications/Public Relations

Phone: 651-232-6410