Experts Tackle Cardiac Rhythm Monitoring Data Challenges
By Beth Friedman, FACHDM, Sr. Partner, FINN Partners
LinkedIn: Beth Friedman
LinkedIn: FINN Partners
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Imagine making sense of clinical data transmitted from thousands of remote patients, all with different cardiac devices, data formats, and submission schedules. Some data is billable, while other transmissions are not, yet all must be assessed for clinical significance as patient lives could be on the line.
This was the complex, day-to-day scenario highlighted by presenters at the Heart Rhythm Society’s HRX2025 event. Held from September 3rd to 6th in Atlanta, Georgia, this “quiet conference” had attendees focused intently, headphones on, on a single, unifying challenge: how to effectively manage the profusion of data generated by remotely monitored cardiovascular implantable electronic devices (CIEDs).
As a veteran of dozens of health IT conferences, I found my first HRX Innovation Summit to be uniquely educational and truly eye-opening. Here are my top four cardiac rhythm management (CRM) takeaways from the event.
Manage the Deluge of Data
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), approximately 6.7 million Americans over the age of 20 have heart failure, and that number is projected to rise to 8.5 million by 2030. Heart arrhythmias are also on the rise, with 10.5 million Americans diagnosed with atrial fibrillation—a common type of arrhythmia—in 2024. The AHA also reports that more than 300,000 new cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) are implanted annually.
This surge in cardiac conditions has been met with rapid innovation in both implantable and wearable cardiac monitoring technology. Amy Tucker, MSN, RN, CCDS, FHRS, the nurse manager of the Cardiac Device Clinic at Atrium Health Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute, confirmed that “devices are more advanced, the data coming in from these devices is more complex, and the patient volume continues to grow. The data overload is amazing!” Tucker’s organization began remote CIED monitoring in 2005 and has been doing so ever since.
However, clinical innovation often brings new operational challenges, and cardiac device management is no exception. Cardiologists, electrophysiologists, nurses, allied health professionals, billing professionals, and administrative staff are all stakeholders in the cardiac rhythm management (CRM) workflow. To manage this complexity, teams must collaborate and have a unified view of patient data.
According to Andy Winburn, MS, RN, a product manager at Murj, “as a group, there is a cohesive effort underway to work together and make efficiency happen through better interoperability and data management. This is essential for quality outcomes, staff satisfaction, and the financial sustainability of our health systems.”
An enlightening panel at a recent conference discussed the operational side of remote cardiac device monitoring and the data challenges involved. Here are their tips for success:
- Create efficient workflow processes to prevent burnout and support the retention of cardiac clinic staff.
- Use red, yellow, and green device alerts effectively to identify expected transmissions that don’t require immediate attention.
- Combine technology with expert know-how, templated expressions, and standardized alert protocols by device manufacturer to identify and address high-priority cases.
- Implement and document escalation processes.
- Use certified remote monitoring technicians with at least two years of experience conducting in-person clinic visits.
- Introduce career ladders for staff who are also experienced in EHRs, clinical documentation, and patient education.
- Hold weekly huddles with in-clinic and remote teams to ensure effective communication.
- Work with cardiologists and electrophysiologists to gain consensus on what constitutes red and yellow device alerts. Ask physicians which transmissions are most important to them based on patient diagnosis, clinical status, underlying medications, and device type.
Finally, best practices also include using outsourced remote monitoring technicians and technology platforms to capture, collate, review, report, and alert on incoming transmissions.
Prioritize Interoperability
Several sessions focused on a major challenge within the cardiac rhythm management (CRM) sector: gaps in data interoperability. Moderated by David Slotwiner, MD, Chief of the Division of Cardiology at New York Presbyterian Queens, a panel of experts agreed that while middleware has advanced and standards are progressing, sharing data remains difficult.
The core issue isn’t a lack of data; it’s getting remote monitoring data to the right person at the right time with minimal effort. According to Jill Schaeffer, CRNP, MSN, an EP Nurse Practitioner at Penn Medicine, “I literally spend 15 minutes to find remote monitoring data and create a profile of my patient. The lack of interoperability forces us to be detectives, running around the systems until we find the data we need.”
Panelists from three technology vendors agreed that the CRM community must unite with a shared vision for data governance to manage the orchestration of this information. Winburn noted, “Once coalesced, data must also flow to the EHR with standards behind it to establish a consistent, usable format.” He emphasized that working with existing and new interoperability standards is the future for the sector.
The Heart Rhythm Society has a strong commitment to move forward with IEEE, HL7, and FHIR, as several panelists mentioned. However, remote monitoring data is complex, as explained by Stuart Mendenhall, MD, a Cardiac Electrophysiologist and Researcher at Scripps Memorial Hospital: “It’s a fractal—the closer you look at it, the more complex it becomes.”
The ultimate vision is a remote monitoring dashboard that brings all information together regardless of device type, patient diagnosis, provider, or location. Companies like Murj and Pacemate currently report this capability. Data must be converted to an electronic format, packaged, accepted by various platforms, and then brought together at an individual practitioner level so they can see everything they need about a patient in a timely fashion. As Winburn stated, “As a cohesive group, the cardiac device industry can make this vision happen.”
Keep Learning
Many other topics were covered including the use of AI in remote cardiac monitoring, ablation and other procedures moving from hospital outpatient departments to ambulatory surgery centers, and the value of remote cardiac monitoring revenue to health systems’ overall financial sustainability.
For this first-time attendee, three data management nuances of the CRM sector bubbled up to my mental “inbox”.
– The data demands of this sector are extremely complex.
– Incorporating wearable data will push the envelope on standards, governance, FHIR, interoperability.
– Revenue generated by CRM is a money-maker for health systems; proper billing is essential.
The Society’s annual meeting, Heart Rhythm 2026, will be held in Chicago from April 23rd to 26th.
Until then, Chris Irving, Chief Experience Officer, Head of Design and Co-Founder of Murj believes that, “the future of CRM opens new doors for preventative cardiac care and better patient experiences as technology eliminates administrative minutia for clinicians”. Irving’s goal is to remove the formulaic work of CRM and use technology to create remote monitoring process efficiencies, freeing clinicians up to focus on the cardiac care they were trained to do.”
I look forward to checking in on the sector at Heart Rhythm 2026.