Patients will use Propeller’s digital health tools to manage symptoms and increase adherence, in partnership with Desert Oasis’ team of clinical pharmacists
June 8, 2021 – Propeller Health today announced an expanded partnership with Palm Springs, Calif. based Desert Oasis Healthcare (DOHC) to increase inhaler adherence, decrease rescue use, and lower healthcare costs for people with asthma and COPD.
The partnership with DOHC expands the use of Propeller’s digital health solution among high-risk COPD patients, who experience avoidable hospitalizations and ER visits at a greater rate than the general population and who can benefit from digital health intervention to manage their symptoms. Through this collaboration, Propeller will be available to over 700 people with asthma and COPD, the majority of them high-risk COPD patients.
DOHC first partnered with Propeller in 2017 on a pilot program for its COPD population. The pilot program enrolled 100 patients and saw marked increases in medication adherence, decreases in rescue events and decreases in healthcare visits for patients on the Propeller program.
Based on the success of the pilot, DOHC expanded the program to serve its full asthma and COPD population in late 2020.
“Propeller has changed the way we provide care to people with asthma and COPD by giving us an objective, collaborative way to monitor patient progress and adjust treatment plans accordingly,” said Thomas Brazeal, PharmD, clinical pharmacist manager of Technology & Outcomes at Desert Oasis Healthcare. “We have observed huge improvements not just in clinical outcomes like adherence and rescue use, but in patient engagement and quality of life.”
The DOHC partnership is also unique in its use of clinical pharmacists to manage patient enrollment, monitoring and outreach, resulting in high patient engagement rates and positive clinical outcomes.
“Our partnership with Desert Oasis Healthcare is a great example of the power of digital health to empower patients and keep them out of the hospital,” said Susa Monacelli, general manager of Propeller Health. “Our goal is to give these patients the tools they need to take their medication on time, avoid preventable symptoms, and ultimately get back to the activities they enjoy.”
In previous clinical studies unrelated to this collaboration, the Propeller platform increased asthma control by 63 percent,1 increased medication adherence by 58 percent,2 and reduced asthma-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations by 57 percent.3
1 Merchant RK et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract 2016
2 Van Sickle D et al. Eur Respir J 2016
3 Merchant RK et al. World Allergy Org J 2018
For media
Desert Oasis Healthcare
Barry Dayton
+1 760.320.8814, ext. 1504
barry.dayton@mydohc.com
Propeller Health
Rachel Fields
+1 630.901.8265
rachel.fields@propellerhealth.com