Patient Compliance with and Attitudes Towards Health Buddy

This report addresses patient acceptance of a new device called a Health Buddy used to communicate between patients chronically ill with congestive heart failure (CHF) and a health care provider (usually a nurse) in a case management program.

Literature sources suggest that frequent monitoring of chronically ill patients can improve outcomes and reduce costs through two mechanisms: 1) physicians can respond quickly (e.g., by adjusting medications) to changes in patient status (e.g., weight gain); and 2) the nurse case manager can educate and motivate the patient to comply better with medical advice (e.g., prescribed medications and dietary restrictions).

The Health Buddy is placed in the patient's home, and provides daily monitoring.