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When It Comes to Patient Care Cover Story: Miami Children’s Health

“Walk the Talk” System and Tyto Care Expand

Telehealth Services
Recently I was having center it is always
lunch with a Healthcare amazing how wide the
executive for whom, gap is between organi- Continued from page 1
over the years, I have zations where staff and follow-up visits for post-operative Martinez expects telehealth to become
developed a great deal of members go out of patients, patients with complex medical more important in today's pediatric
respect. Although we their way to make peo- needs, and those who require care for healthcare environment. One reason is
only see each other ple feel welcome and more acute conditions. Tyto Care can that nationally, there is a shortage of
every 4-6 months, I those who simply do also be used to obtain an expert consult pediatric specialists across the country.
always appreciate his not. You can watch as or second opinion and provide medical “There's just not enough specialists
insights on the industry, countless staff and expertise to schools, remote clinics and going around,” says Martinez. “There are
especially as it relates to receptionists go about other entities MCHS serves. many pediatricians but very few pedi-
patient care. At one of their work (or worse One limitation of MCHS’ current tele- atric specialists, especially in certain
the facilities he visits, yet walk right by) health system, MCH Anywhere, is that fields such as cardiology, neurology, and
there is a small Cuban BY JAY JUFFRE without even a simple the technology is very bulky and expen- pulmonology. Those specialists are hard
coffee shop near a acknowledgement they sive to implement at home, according to to find.”
patient waiting area. are there. There is an Edward Martinez, Senior Vice President Through telehealth services, a patient
Whenever he is there, he stops by to old saying, ‘never prioritize tasks over and Chief Information Officer of MCHS. could have exposure to pediatric special-
order a “Café Americano Decaf” people’ and yet some in the medical “It runs anywhere between $20,000 to ists across the state—or even across the
(Picture the person taking the order community do it every day. When it $40,000. So while it was very effective, it country—and limit travel.
doing a triple take as they try to recall comes to patient care make sure your was only available provider-to-provider “A lot of parents will travel to our
the location of the decaffeinated coffee team always walks the talk, by taking because of the costs.” Miami facility from Palm Beach,
…) Regardless, whenever he is there, time to say a simple, “Hello”, “Good Martinez adds, “But we wanted to Jacksonville, Tallahassee, and Tampa Bay
he takes the time to say hello to any morning”, or “How are you today?” bring this technology to home con- because we have excellent specialists,”
patients and their families who hap- That simple gesture puts patients and sumers. We believe that a telehealth con- says Martinez. “That travel is an incon-
pen to be sitting in the area. This guy families at ease and will help build the sult between a physician and a patient venience to the parents, especially in our
always walks the talk when it comes culture where patient care is always in can't just be about me talking to you and initial visit because you're trying to
to his expectations. Put simply, he gets balance with quality and outcomes. saying, ‘I have an earache or I have a determine whether that child really
it. The response from the folks sitting fever.’ There has to be a way for a clini- needs to be at Miami Children's or they
in the waiting areas is always well Jay Juffre is Regional Vice President, cian to actually determine what your can be taken care of at home with a pedi-
received. They all really appreciate South East Region / National Service conditions are. We can't just prescribe atrician.”
him going out of his way to say hello Director, ImageFIRST. For more informa- medication based on your symptoms. In the past, with MCH Anywhere,
and see how they are doing. tion on ImageFIRST, call We have to diagnose the symptoms to MCHS would use their telehealth plat-
Quick gut check. How are you and 1-800-932-7472 or understand what it is.” form that was already connected at the
your team doing? Whenever I visit a visit www.imagefirst.com. Through MCH Anywhere, clinicians closest provider facility, and consult and
hospital, doctor’s office or surgery diagnose the patient there. That limited
can diagnose symptoms—they are able some of the travel. With the Tyto Care
to listen to a heartbeat or lungs, conduct Home Monitoring Kit, patients won’t
an ultrasound, and provide other diag- have to leave their home at all. By pro-
nostic technology services from any- viding telehealth services, Martinez says
where in the world. that it can change the way the U.S. has
“But we couldn't do it at home because looked at medicine for many years.
it was cost prohibitive,” says Martinez. “The secret of medical care is good
“So we started looking at building our health and preventive medicine is good
own product. We looked at where we medicine,” says Martinez. “The Tyto
could find an engineering company that Care Home Monitoring Kit is really the
would build what we were envisioning beginning of a new era of devices for
and found that company in Tyto Care. both home and the clinical space. It’s
We partnered with them to further already FDA approved but this is only
develop their product and take it to the tip of the iceberg. The home-sized
another level, which was live streaming device will be affordable, provides quali-
video and audio.” ty, can be integrated into other existing
Through this partnership, MCHS and telehealth programs, or stand alone.
Tyto Care will work together to integrate Through telehealth, we can intervene
the live remote examination capabilities before a child becomes super sick, and
of the Tyto Care platform with the health keep them healthy, understanding that
system’s MCH Anywhere platform to would reduce cost, improve quality, and
expand capabilities to deliver virtual obviously make it better for everybody.”
medical specialist consultations.
Collaborating with Tyto Care now allows For more information on Miami
MCHS physicians to provide ongoing Children’s Health System, visit
care at the highest level, while giving www.mch.com. For more information on
patients easier access and more conven- Tyto Care, visit www.tytocare.com.
ience when it comes to their health from
their homes or elsewhere.

Delray Medical Center Performs

First Incisionless Surgery

to T reat Heartburn

Surgery without an incision is now a possibility. The new Transoral Incisionless
Fundoplication procedure, or TIF , using the innovative EsophyX® device for the
treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is now available at Delray
Medical Center.The TIF procedure is based on established principles of surgical repair
of the antireflux barrier, except that it is “surgery from within” performed transorally
(through the mouth). The procedure can reduce hiatal hernia and can re-establishe
the high pressure zone between the stomach and esophagus restoring the natural,
physiological anatomy to prevent gastroesophageal reflux. Because the procedure is
incisionless, there is reduced pain, reduced recovery and no visible scar.

6 June 2017 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News