Videophone Monitoring of SARS Patients in Voluntary Home Isolation

A Good Idea

This practice has been Archived and is no longer maintained.

Description

Nassau County Department of Health (County) has developed and pilot-tested a program for videophone monitoring of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) patients and contacts in voluntary home isolation and quarantine. The program is targeted towards SARS patients and contacts who are not ill enough to be hospitalized and known SARS patients who are being released from the hospital.

Goal / Mission

The goal of this program is to protect the public from the spread of SARS by using the least restrictive means possible. Program objectives are1) to provide a mechanism for effectively monitoring patients on voluntary home isolation and quarantine, 2) to enable visual verification of patient compliance and condition, and 3) to maximize limited resources by being cost-effective and time-efficient.

Results / Accomplishments

The use of a videophone program is an efficient and effective mechanism for visually monitoring compliance with home isolation and quarantine while protecting the public's health. The videophone monitoring process lasts from three to ten days (or longer) depending on the resolution or progression of symptoms.

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
Nassau County Department of Health
Primary Contact
No current contact information available
Topics
Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
Community / Social Environment
Organization(s)
Nassau County Department of Health
Source
National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
Date of publication
2005
Location
Nassau County, NY
For more details
https://eweb.naccho.org/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?site...
Additional Audience
SARS patients

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More

A Good Idea meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program funding source, program implementation steps and outcomes.
  2. The program evaluation is limited to descriptive measure(s) of success/accomplishment (i.e., program participation rates, number of services/education sessions/radio messages provided). Note: oftentimes, the program has been newly implemented and a program evaluation has not yet been conducted. Programs that have not yet been evaluated, but which show promise in improving health or quality of life, are classified as Good Ideas until an evaluation is conducted.