The contract has been led by the European Centre for Connected Health (part of Northern Ireland's Public Health Agency) who worked in partnership with, and on behalf of, the five Health and Social Care Trusts.
Over the next 6 years TF3 (a consortium of Tunstall Healthcare, Fold Telecare and S3 Group) will provide a telemonitoring service to Northern Ireland (RTNI) which will support over 3,500 people a year, helping to reduce the pressure on frontline services by enabling people to be cared for in the community - a key aspect of the Government's ambition for health services in Northern Ireland.
Mr Poots visited the home of Larne pensioner Michael Howard who has Chronic Pulmonary Obstructive Disorder (COPD) to hear how Telemonitoring NI has changed his life.
Mr Poots said: "Connected Health is quite a simple concept - by using companies with innovative technologies and products, we enable more patients to manage their condition at home which means fewer visits to hospital and provides opportunities for local companies to reap the rewards.
"By using advanced technology in the right way, we enable patients and carers to monitor their condition at home, which leads to earlier intervention and reduces admissions to hospital.
"This is at the very heart of where our health service needs to go - we need to be more flexible, put the patient at the centre and ensure more people have the chance to stay at home with their families."
Patients with chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and heart conditions, take their readings which are transferred automatically into a secure server which can be assessed by their healthcare worker.
Simon Arnold, Director of TF3 says: "The managed services that the TF3 Consortium provides are key to minimising unplanned hospital admissions, accelerating discharge and enabling clinicians to improve patient care through remote monitoring. It's a great step forward in supporting the people of Northern Ireland."
Kevin McSorley, Director of TF3 added: "The combination of local knowledge of health, social care and housing services, coupled with large-scale deployment experience made the TF3 consortium a perfect partner for RTNI."
Using the service, Mr Howard (71) monitors his vital signs using the new technology every weekday morning. The information is monitored centrally and if readings show signs of deterioration to an unacceptable level, Mr Howard's local healthcare professional is alerted.
"Taking my readings is such a simple process but one that gives me huge benefits as it is an early warning system to me and also for the specialist nurses in charge of my care. Without the remote telemonitoring I would be running back and forward to the GPs' surgery all the time to have things checked out. Having my signs monitored by a nurse means any changes in my condition are dealt with immediately and this has prevented me from being admitted to hospital - in the past I've had to spend six days in hospital any time I'm admitted with a chest infection," he said.
"The telemonitoring is not only reassuring for me, it also gives me more control over managing my own condition and as a result I have less upheaval in my life, and I'm less of a cost to the health care system. Most importantly, it gives me peace of mind and one less thing to worry about at my age."
About TF3
TF3 is a group of three companies with a 30-year track record in providing patient-centric technology solutions: