Acelity Launches a Telehealth Wound Therapy Solution for the Home Care Setting

Acelity, a global wound care and regenerative medicine company, has launched iOn PROGRESS Care Network with Remote Therapy Monitoring, a proprietary remote therapy monitoring system that delivers continuous at-home monitoring for patients prescribed negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) in the home. The iOn PROGRESS technology enables timely feedback on patients’ use of NPWT, as well as increased clinician interaction to assist with patient compliance.
 
iOn PROGRESS Remote Therapy Monitoring works in conjunction with the ACTIV.A.C. Therapy System, which was specifically developed for patients treated in the home. The ACTIV.A.C. Therapy System’s lightweight, ergonomic design provides ease of use while the patented SENSAT.R.A.C. Technology, a real-time pressure feedback system designed to deliver and maintain the prescribed negative pressure, provides optimal healing outcomes, according to the company.
 
“V.A.C. Therapy Systems are the leader in negative pressure wound therapy, and our focus is on expanding the technology with the dual aim of improving patient experience and reducing the overall cost of care,” said Joe Woody, president and CEO of Acelity. “We believe that by providing and supporting care in the optimal setting we can reduce the burden on patients as well as total costs; with the availability of the iOn PROGRESS Remote Therapy Monitoring, we move closer to our ultimate goal of achieving these care enhancements.”
 
Remote therapy monitoring for wound care is particularly important for chronic wounds because compliance to prescribed therapy is a critical success factor for patients treated in the home. This new system is supported by the iOn PROGRESS Care Network, Acelity’s trained nursing professionals who can interact with patients to drive proper utilization. This helps to ensure patient care is accurately tracked and proactive intervention is achieved when necessary.
 
“Acelity has decades of expertise in wound therapy and the company is combining that experience with remote therapy monitoring in an attempt to efficiently reduce costs and improve outcomes for patients with chronic wounds,” said Ron Silverman, M.D., FACS, chief medical officer of Acelity. “We aim to create a powerful continuous care model that enables early detection and prompt intervention that can improve clinical quality, patient satisfaction and cost containment. We see a critical opportunity to advance the science of wound care with solutions like iOn PROGRESS Remote Therapy Monitoring that can instill greater confidence with physicians when they send patients home to continue therapy.”
 
Chronic wounds affect more than 6.5 million people in the United States each year and require constant treatment and attention.¹ In fact, wound care treatment costs the United States more than $25 billion each year.² Patients can be non-compliant for a variety of reasons and need support. When patients are non-compliant, it can lead to unnecessary spending for delayed healing, excessive hospital readmissions, which are a significant cost factor, as well as unnecessary emergency room visits. Many readmissions could possibly be prevented with improved postoperative monitoring and care.
 
Building upon this expanding platform, Acelity will soon initiate a pilot program for iOn RESULTS Remote Therapy Monitoring, which works in conjunction with the V.A.C.ULTA Therapy System to monitor the therapy units’ performance in the hospital setting. iOn RESULTS Remote Therapy Monitoring will enable timely feedback and therapy application optimization to enhance product performance metrics and identify any hospital staff training or support needs, as well as support asset location and billing accuracy.
 
Acelity L.P. Inc. and its subsidiaries are a global advanced wound care and regenerative medicine company created by uniting three companies: Kinetic Concepts Inc., LifeCell Corporation, and Systagenix Wound Management Limited. Available in more than 80 countries, the ACELITY product portfolio delivers solutions that speed healing and lead the industry in quality, safety and customer experience. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, Acelity employs more than 5,800 people around the world.

References:
1. Sen CK, Gordillo GM, Roy S, et al. Human Skin Wounds: A Major and Snowballing Threat to Public Health and the Economy. Wound repair and regeneration: official publication of the Wound Healing Society [and] the European Tissue Repair Society. 2009;17(6):763-771.
2. Ibid.