How to Set Up Your Remote Patient Monitoring System

In this mega-guide, we will break down every step of setting up a remote patient monitoring system in your practice and what that will look like for you. Your practice is a multifaceted machine, and many pieces have to align to make the transition into using remote patient monitoring a good one.

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is changing healthcare more and more every day, and if you have found this piece, you might be wondering if it’s the right fit for your practice. The bigger question might be whether implementing this technology will disrupt things in your practice too much.

And we won’t lie, there is some work here, but there is a lot that your practice stands to gain by adopting remote patient monitoring into your patient services to increase health outcomes and stay on top of patient conditions.

We will quickly review what remote patient monitoring is, and a few reasons why implementing this is a good idea before getting to how exactly you can do it. Also, we will talk about a few CMS changes related to the setup process.

What Is Remote Patient Monitoring & How It’s Changing Healthcare

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) devices and technology collect a patient’s health information without being present. The tech involved here does both the collecting and the transmitting of data used to monitor a patient and their condition.

It’s being adopted by more and more healthcare facilities every day as an aspect of value-based care. By changing the way you care for your patients, remote patient monitoring opens up a lot of doors. Anyone with eyes could tell you that technology changes everything around us, and healthcare is not immune to this kind of progress. This kind of tech can be the thing that lifts your practice off the plateau, which so many physicians experience.

With remote patient monitoring, they can retake the reins.

And when you look at it like that, it makes sense that the remote patient monitoring market is growing more than 14% every year.

This guide is not meant to advocate or sell you on this solution. We created this to clear up any confusion about what it would look like for you to get started.

So, with that in mind, let’s get into how you can set up your RPM program.

Step #1. What Services You Want To Provide Using Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM)

First, let’s look at the basic question of what kind of service model you want to implement. There are three major types:

• Self-managed
• Hybrid
• Full-service

Self-Managed

In a self-managed setup, your practice takes on almost everything: choosing and purchasing RPM devices, handling tech support, training staff and patients, and integrating RPM into your EMR.

This can offer the highest level of control and potentially the best margins, but it’s also time- and labor-intensive. Unless you have extra staff dedicated to RPM, most small and mid-sized practices will find this difficult to manage at scale.

Hybrid

This model outsources certain parts of the RPM program to a vendor while retaining others. You may have a company handle device logistics and tech support, but your staff conducts the clinical engagement.

It’s a balance between autonomy and convenience, and it’s a popular model for clinics who want to keep clinical relationships in-house while outsourcing administrative burdens.

Full-Service

With this type, the practice works with a remote patient monitoring company that basically does everything for them. The remote patient monitoring companies will—in most cases—lease the devices to the practice, handle all tech support, and even distribute those devices directly to patients and manage patient onboarding.

The tech is often cellular and not usually connected via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, which are known to decrease patient adherence and ultimately impact the long-term success of the program.

The drawback is a higher ongoing cost because most companies have monthly payment plans, but it’s not all bad. The initial cost of the devices is eliminated, and the time spent managing the program is significantly reduced. Many RPM providers will provide the first device without cost.

Fees from full-service vendors might include everything from the devices themselves and software hosting to a customer support system.

Tellihealth, for example, only provides full-service programs and backs that up with accuRPM, a 24/7 Health Operations Center that responds to and manages patient issues, so providers can keep focused on the task at hand.

If you have no idea what kind you prefer after reading this section, don’t worry. This subject comes up a lot, and we discuss both kinds in every area where it is relevant.

Step #2. Select Your Remote Monitoring Devices

At the heart of any RPM program are the devices used to collect patient data. Common examples include:

• Glucometers
• Blood pressure cuffs
• Pulse oximeters
• Scales
• Thermometers
• Spirometers

You’ll want to select devices that are:

• FDA-cleared
• Easy for patients to use (especially older adults)
• Have reliable connectivity (cellular is preferred)
• Provide real-time data transmission

Make sure your devices are user-friendly and don’t require patients to fiddle with apps or Bluetooth settings. Look for cellular-enabled options where possible.

Tellihealth provides FDA-cleared, 4G cellular-enabled devices that ship directly to patients and require no setup from them.

Step #3. Establish Protocols for Enrollment and Consent

To stay compliant with CMS billing requirements, you must have proper documentation that patients consented to participate in the RPM program.

It’s also essential to define:

• Who is eligible (usually patients with one or more chronic conditions)
• Who obtains the consent (nurse, MA, or provider)
• How consent is documented in the EHR
• How patients are educated about using the device(s)

You must document consent once before RPM services begin, and make sure patients understand how the program works, how often they’ll be contacted, and how their data will be used.

Step #4. Set Up Your Billing & Documentation Workflows

Medicare requires specific criteria to be met for RPM billing:

• CPT 99453: Initial setup and patient education (one-time)
• CPT 99454: Device supply with daily monitoring (at least 16 days of readings in a 30-day period)
• CPT 99457: First 20 minutes of clinical staff/provider time per month
• CPT 99458: Each additional 20 minutes

To meet billing requirements, you’ll need:

• Time tracking of staff interactions (calls, data review, care planning)
• A system that alerts your team when thresholds are met (e.g., 16 days of readings)
• Integration or exports for billing teams to process claims

If you use accuRPM or another turnkey system, these components are often built into the platform.

Step #5. Train Your Team and Patients

For RPM to be successful, your team and your patients must feel confident using the system.

Train your clinical staff on:

• Enrollment protocols
• Device functionality
• Responding to abnormal readings
• Documentation and billing steps

Train patients on:

• How and when to take readings
• What to expect from your RPM program
• Who to call for questions (tech vs clinical)

Tellihealth includes onboarding kits and multilingual patient support to ensure patients feel empowered and stay adherent.

Step #6. Monitor and Optimize

Once your program is live:

• Track patient adherence (missed readings, drop-offs)
• Monitor billing compliance
• Analyze outcomes (hospitalizations, A1C, BP, etc.)
• Solicit feedback from staff and patients

Optimization helps you maximize your program’s impact and financial return. Many practices review RPM performance monthly and make adjustments to workflows, patient targeting, or staffing.

It’s YOUR Remote Patient Monitoring Program

It needs to work for you. Every company you work with has something different to offer. It’s your job to determine which one is the best fit for your practice.

As each step comes and goes, hold the vendor or vendors you work with accountable and ask for as much as needed.

At Tellihealth, we value you and your practice above all else. Be sure that whoever you work with does the same as you set up your remote patient monitoring program.