ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF TELEMONITORING IMPLEMENTATION FOR PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC DISEASES

Abstract

The article examines the economic efficiency of implementing telemonitoring for patients with chronic diseases in Ukraine from the perspective of the healthcare system. The relevance of the study is determined by the high burden of chronic noncommunicable diseases, the need for continuous outpatient follow-up, limited financial and human resources, and the growing importance of digital healthcare tools under martial law. The aim of the study is to assess the economic feasibility of telemonitoring and to identify the conditions under which its implementation may be budget-justified. A model-based comparative analysis was conducted between standard follow-up care and follow-up with telemonitoring for a hypothetical cohort of patients with chronic diseases. The model incorporated outpatient care costs, hospitalization costs, and the costs of the telemonitoring program, as well as assumptions regarding hospitalization rates and their potential reduction due to remote monitoring. Scenario analysis, threshold analysis, and sensitivity analysis were applied to evaluate the robustness of the results and identify key determinants of economic outcomes. The findings show that under baseline assumptions telemonitoring is not automatically budget-neutral in the short term, since the reduction in hospitalizations only partially offsets the cost of the program. At the same time, when telemonitoring is targeted at high-risk patient groups and implemented at a lower program cost, it may generate cost savings. The results also indicate that the economic effectiveness of telemonitoring is highly sensitive to the initial risk profile of patients, the cost of hospitalization, and the organizational design of the program. The analysis over a 3–5-year horizon demonstrated that under average population parameters the additional budget burden accumulates, whereas in high-risk cohorts telemonitoring may produce a favorable economic effect already in the medium term due to the prevention of costly complications and hospital admissions. The practical significance of the results lies in the possibility of using the proposed model for planning pilot programs, selecting priority patient cohorts, and assessing the budget feasibility of telemonitoring within the Ukrainian healthcare system, as well as supporting evidence-based decision-making in the context of healthcare digitalization.