Diabetes is a chronic disease that imposes huge expenditure on health care systems [1]. Diabetes is now the fourth leading cause of physician visits in Western communities and the seventh leading cause of death across the United States [2, 3]. Regarding the remarkable incidence over the past two decades, the number of diabetes is expected to reach up to 438 million by 2030 [4]. In Iran, 9.3% of people are infected by diabetes, which by 2030, 13.1% of Iranians will suffer from this condition [5]. Diabetes complications include neuropathy, retinopathy, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. It is time-consuming and costly to treat diabetes with relatively low success. In terms of age and gender, the costs of diabetic patients are estimated 20.3-fold higher than the costs of other patients [3, 6].
It is difficult to access specialists and proper assistance in service offering units in villages and remote areas. Factors like physical disability, geographical, financial, and time limitations prevent people in these areas to visit specialized centers in the city at the right time. It creates injustice and imposes costs on the health system [7]. Remote patient monitoring (RPM) lessens such limitations by gathering data on patient health from places such as homes using digital technologies and then transmitting data to health care providers in various locations via telecommunication lines for more consideration and receiving feedback. RPM involves the analysis of physiological parameters (e.g., blood sugar, blood pressure, and weight), counseling, education, and early diagnosis [8, 9].
Information of patients is monitored by the service providers in constant manner. In case of any problem, patients are supported immediately by alarming service providers and someone who accompanies the patient if necessary, and thus, patients and their families no longer should be worried about the problem [10].
RPM technology reduces the number of hospitalizations, visits to the emergency department, and the length of hospitalizations, according to evidence. RPM is thereby an efficient solution for disease prevention, proper access to services, diminishing health care costs, and lessening complications. With RPM, resources are used more efficiently [10–13] and the patient's quality of life is increased remarkably [13].
These services are provided accurately and strict regulations are followed to maintain confidentiality over patients' information [9]. Hence, RPM can be more affordable than other approaches [14].
The management of chronic conditions depends on the patient's participation and ability to follow the physician's recommendations in the long run. Patient education is critical for disease management [15]. The time saved by implementing RPM technology improves efficiency and allows healthcare providers to allocate more time to educate the patient from a distance and communicate with him or her [16].
Owing to proper interaction between the care system and the patient, RPM promotes the efficiency of diabetes therapy and enhances physicians' ability to monitor and manage patients in the health system. For example, in patients with type 2 diabetes, a 1% reduction in the HbA1c level results in a 16% reduction in heart failure, a 19% lower risk of developing cataracts, a 43% lower risk of amputation or death from peripheral vascular disease, and in general, a 25% reduction in complications such as retinopathy, neuropathy, and diabetic nephropathy [17, 18].
RPM has resulted in sustainable growth in markets in many countries, including the USA, Canada, Mexico, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Russia, Japan, China, India, Australia, South Korea, Taiwan, Brazil, Turkey, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa [19].
In 2016, 7.1 million people attended digital health programs. As estimated by researchers, the number of patients receiving RPM medical care will reach 50.2 million over the next four years by fixing restrictions with RPM, including lack of awareness, the resistance of health care professionals to accept RPM, the lack of appropriate refund policies, and the challenges in the RPM equipment market. Out of this, 25.2 million patients will use RPM technology, and in turn, the application of RPM technology will reach 38% from 2016 to 2022 [20–23].
Hence, this study deals with the economic evaluation of remote patient monitoring (RPM) system in patients with type 2 diabetes in Iran's primary care system in order to provide physicians with the sufficient trustworthy evidence so as to encourage them to use this effective technology. It also aims to convince the health system and insurance policy-makers to promote and allocate the funds, reimburse for services and reduce the heavy burden that diabetes imposes on the health system and families.