PMD Healthcare Creating Pulmonary Fibrosis Patient Advisory Board

PMD Healthcare is creating advisory boards composed of pulmonary fibrosis and cystic fibrosis patients and caregivers.

The company, whose services include remote monitoring of patients’ health conditions, is in the midst of recruiting members of both boards.

PMD said the purpose of the boards is to gather information and opinions directly from patients and caregivers to better understand their needs and challenges, including managing their daily care.

The company also plans to alert patients to healthcare developments that could affect their lives. It will ask for their feedback on such developments, including changes in healthcare regulations and insurance coverage.

PMD said the first advisory board meetings are expected to be in February and March. More information about the pulmonary fibrosis board can be found at http://info.mypmd.com/pf-advisory-board.

Both boards will meet several times a year, with each session lasting about an hour. The meetings will be by online video conferencing. Participants will be paid for their time. They will also have a chance to become what PMD calls “thought leaders,” sharing their views in blogs, podcasts, videos, and on social media.

“Working directly with CF [cystic fibrosis] and PF [pulmonary fibrosis] patients and their caregivers will enable us to better understand, and meet the needs of, patients in terms of education, new product development and support services,” Steve Sullivan, a PMD Healthcare executive vice president, said in a press release.

More information about the cystic fibrosis advisory board can be found at http://info.mypmd.com/cf-advisory-board.

PMD Healthcare, which was founded in 2010, specializes in medical devices, digital health, and chronic care management. It developed the first personal spirometer, Spiro PD, so healthcare professionals could monitor patients’ lung function remotely. Spiro PD won U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in 2011.

PMD has created a second-generation spirometer, Spiro PD 2.0, since then. Doctors can use it to detect rapid declines in lung function and assess flare-ups. It can also help them track patients’ response to therapies.