Innovation of Remote Vital Signs Monitoring and Telemedicine Systems Using Internet of Things for Rural Health Care

Abstract: The emergence of the COVID 19 pandemic called the attention of the public to the challenges that the healthcare system in the Philippines needs to overcome. Rural and remote areas that have geographical disadvantages were also affected due to limited access to healthcare services during the implementation of lockdown in the country. This paper focuses on the developed remote vital sign monitoring and telemedicine system called PaglauM. It is a device that measures a person’s heart and pulse rate, blood oxygen saturation, body temperature, heart rhythm, and heart’s electrical activity and comes with an application that can be used to monitor the user’s vitals and access telemedicine services. This study involved 30 participants for the testing and evaluation of PaglauM compared to available medical devices. The results of the conducted test showed promising output in delivering pre- diagnosis of health. With the use of PaglauM, rural areas that struggle in providing health care because of limited health care facilities and geographical disadvantages can be helped by this cost-effective vital monitoring device that implements the use of telemedicine, providing a way for rural areas to connect to tertiary hospitals regardless of their distance.

Telemedicine, pre-diagnostic, remote patient monitoring, cost-effective

1. T. Gunasegaran, “Telemedicine provider reports high teleconsultation uptake in the Philippines”. Healthcare IT News. Retrieved from https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/asia/telemedicine-provider- reports-high-teleconsultation-uptake-philippines [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Statista, “Number of level 3 hospitals Philippines 2022, by region.” Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1121952/philippines-number-of- level-3-hospitals-by- region/#:~:text=As%20of%20 December%2031%2C%202022,all%20 kinds%20of%20health%20services. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Wan et al., “Wearable IOT enabled real-time Health Monitoring System.” EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking, 2018(1). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1186/s13638- 018-1308-x [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. J. Jeffries, “4 Very important reasons why vital signs monitoring matters.” Infinium Medical. Retrieved from https://infiniummedical.com/vital- signs- monitoring/#:~:text=They%20provide%20crucial%20information%2 0about,pro blemm%2C%20or%20suggest%20lifestyle%20changes. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Worldo meter, “Philippines COVID - Coronavirus statistics”. Retrieved from https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/philippines/ [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. World Health Organization: WHO, “Primary health care.” Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/primary- health-care [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Physiopedia, “Levels of healthcare.” Retrieved from https://www.physiopedia.com/Levels of Healthcare#:~:text=Exampl es%20of%20tertiary%20care%20services,complex%20medical%20a nd%20surgical%20interventions. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. H. Del Mundo, “Mric-global.” Retrieved from https://www.mricg.info/single-post/2018/02/14/shortage-of-hospitals- and-health-workers-in the philippines? fbclid=IwAR0RTGOnprL19RX8SWjTzs4dXsHvbcsg SQO9hTF6CbmX rwJ6ft3gg Sxmw [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Yuki, “Advancements in rural health care in the Philippines. The Borgen Project.” Retrieved from https://borgenproject.org/rural- health-care-in-the-philippines/ [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Young Wonks, “Raspberry Pi Pico W.” Retrieved from https://www.youngwonks.com/blog/raspberry-pi-pico- w#:~:text=Connectivity%3A%20The%20standout%20feature%20of,a ccessibility%20and%20enables%20IoT%20applications. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• Green Human Resources Management Practices and Tertiary Institution Productivity in South West Nigeria
• Evaluation of the Organoleptic Properties of Calabash Fruit (Crescentia Cujete) Jam: A Comprehensive Sensory analysis
• Equilibrium Solution of Two – Dimensional Non-Homogeneous Equations in the Theory of Elastic Mixtures
• Optimisation of Some Conditions for the Biodegradation of Low-Density Polyethylene Strips by Fungi Isolated from Parts of North Central Nigeria
• Closing the Gap: A Comprehensive Analysis of Software Engineering Curriculum and Industry Requirements