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Clarity and empathy - key ingredients if pulse oximeters are to be effective for Pacific families
Updates / News , 26 Nov 21
Chief Executive for Pasifika Medical Association (PMA), Debbie Sorensen, says the use of pulse oximeters is not enough to support the health needs of people in home isolation.

In a recent interview for RNZ’s Midday Report, Mrs Sorensen expressed concern around pulse oximeters being the only device provided as a means of risk assessment for Covid-19 positive cases isolating at home. 

“One of the real complex challenges is expecting people in their home who have no health background or experience to be able to interpret how well or how fit they are.

They’re only one tool (pulse oximeters) in your kit bag to make an assessment on how well people are; they're only one indicator for people who are self-isolating at home.”

Mrs Sorensen says communication around the use of pulse oximeters needs to be stronger so Pacific families in home isolation are appropriately supported. 

“People need to be given much clearer advice on what to do, not just relying on the pulse oximeter. I think that there’s an assumption that clicking onto a YouTube or a video clip that shows how to use the device or reading a sheet of paper will actually be sufficient.

There needs to be more thought put into how our people are communicated with so that people can be sure on how to use the device and what to do and not just rely on that as the only way of deciding whether they’re sick or not.”

 

Full interview here.

 

#pmafamily #pmaunite

 

Date: Friday 26 November 2021