Background: Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is a promising new tool to monitor patients who have historically required observation visits in a hospital, or would have remained hospitalized longer if initiated at hospital discharge, and was widely used in the COVID-19 pandemic. We report the outcomes of hospital admission and urgent/emergent care service utilization in a [...]

Background: Hospitalizations to treat SARS-CoV-2 infected patients have strained health systems worldwide. Monitored outpatient management of select low-risk COVID-19 patients with isolated exertional hypoxia could help preserve hospital resources and reduce costs while aiming to maintain a high standard of care. In this retrospective cohort analysis, we aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of [...]

Background: Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is a promising new tool to monitor patients who have historically required observation visits in a hospital, or would have remained hospitalized longer if initiated at hospital discharge, and was widely used in the COVID-19 pandemic. We report the outcomes of hospital admission and urgent/emergent care service utilization in a [...]

Background: The ratio of partial pressure of arterial oxygen to the fraction of inspired oxygen (P:F ratio) has known clinical utility. For example, it is a key component of the sequential organ failure assesment (SOFA) score which is a validated mortality predictor and the new operational defintion of sepsis. Yet, its use is limited because [...]

Background: Respiratory failure is the most common organ failure syndrome in US hospitals (1). Hospitalists strive to detect the earliest signs of respiratory instability. Measurement of respiratory vital signs (like respiratory rate & oximetry) is a necessary aspect of risk stratification, but it is not sufficient. In one study, 46% of hospitalized patients had no [...]

Background: To address bed capacity concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) waived the certificate of medical necessity for oxygen claims, allowing for reimbursement for oxygen prescribed for patients upon hospital discharge with COVID-19 respiratory illness. This reimbursement allows providers to discharge patients with COVID-19 respiratory illness still [...]

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has required healthcare systems around the world to rapidly innovate and adapt to unprecedented operational and clinical strain. Anticipated limitations in healthcare resource allocation is coupled by the strife caused by the variable clinical course of COVID-19 and the isolation of families inevitable with an inpatient admission. Many healthcare systems have [...]

Background: An important duty of every hospitalist is to detect the earliest signs of imminent clinical deterioration. Breathing motion patterns can convey early warnings of respiratory instability (1). Normal breathing appears regular, effortless, well-coordinated and comfortable (2). In patients at high risk of respiratory deterioration, breathing appears labored (3). Well-established signs of labored breathing include: [...]

Background: Hospitalizations to treat SARS-CoV-2 infected patients have strained health systems worldwide. Monitored outpatient management of select low-risk COVID-19 patients with isolated exertional hypoxia could help preserve hospital resources and reduce costs while aiming to maintain a high standard of care. In this retrospective cohort analysis, we aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of [...]