Tunstall's telehealth solutions enable remote health monitoring that can be tailored specifically to patients' needs. People with long-term conditions such as chronic heart failure (CHF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and diabetes can remain in their homes for longer, while health staff can closely and regularly monitor vital signs and respond quickly to any changes. This helps improve quality of life and helps prevent avoidable hospital admissions.

Telecare solutions from Tunstall enable a cost-effective model of care for older people and those with conditions such as dementia, helping to improve patient outcomes. This enables health and social care organisations to deliver more care with their existing resources and to support a greater number of people. The solutions also help those with long-term needs to live as independently as possible in their own homes.

Joe Killen, managing director, Tunstall Iberica said: "The UK is leading the way in the use of telehealth and telecare to transform health and social care delivery, with large-scale projects already under way and many more emerging. Tunstall's solutions are at the heart of a majority of these projects. Telehealthcare technology is driving the transformation of care services to meet the challenges of ageing populations, and ensuring greater efficiencies in delivery of services through a more preventative approach."

Daily monitoring of conditions using telehealth solutions brings significant benefits to patient care. Telehealth increases patient understanding and responsibility for their condition, it can also enable more accurate prescription of patient medication and improved medication compliance.

Globally, over 860 million people have a chronic disease, and between 75% and 85% of all healthcare expenditure is linked to their treatment. There is a growing acceptance of the use of remote monitoring and support to enhance quality of life for people with such long-term conditions.

In Sheffield, England, the local health Trust is using telehealth solutions from Tunstall to monitor patients with COPD in their own homes. This has reduced COPD-related hospital admissions by 50%, and reduced home visits by community COPD nurses by 80%, cutting travel and enabling healthcare staff to prioritise their workload.

In Spain, the Fundación Andaluza de Servicios Sociales (FASS) of the Junta de Andalucía has announced over 130,000 telecare deployments, helping to increase independence and improve quality of life for service users by enabling them to receive the care and support they need in their own homes.

FASS is the biggest monitoring centre for telecare alarms in mainland Europe with 100 operator stations in Seville and over 50 in Malaga, and has installed and maintained telecare solutions to support older people and those with long-term needs across the Andalusia region. Working with Tunstall Healthcare, FASS is using telecare to keep service users safe and well in their own homes, enabling them to play an active role in the community.

To find out more about Tunstall's advanced telecare and telehealth solutions visit stand 528 at the CCIB, Barcelona, Spain from 15th - 18th March 2010, or visit www.tunstall.co.uk

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• Tunstall's Profile

About Tunstall
Tunstall Healthcare Group is the market leading provider of telehealthcare solutions, with over 2.5 million users globally. Tunstall’s solutions support older people and those with long-term needs, to live independently, by effectively managing their health and well-being. Tunstall provides technology, expertise and advice to millions of people enabling them to lead independent more fulfilling lives. For more information on how telehealthcare can improve quality of life, visit www.tunstallhealth.com.