At-Home Care Devices May Make Pediatric Emergencies Easier To Deal With

InnovationHealthcareAt-Home Care Devices May Make Pediatric Emergencies Easier To Deal WithByDr. Sai Balasubramanian, M.D., J.D.,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Sai writes about healthcare, innovation and technology.Follow AuthorMay 27, 2026, 11:00pm EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Nearly 4 million children across the United States do not have regular access to a pediatrician.gettyEarlier this month, a children’s hospital in LA launched a new program for at-home asthma monitoring using a wearable smart stethoscope device that enables doctors to virtually and remotely keep track of pediatric breathing metrics. The device provides physicians the ability to remotely listen to lung sounds and rapidly assess if a child’s asthma symptoms are progressing, so that escalation in care pathways can be determined. The device is only the size of a coin, and can be worn all day to ensure continuous monitoring. Programs like this are massive boons to parents who are often stranded without pediatric advice in between their hospital visits. According to the World Health Organization, asthma affects nearly 363 million people worldwide, and causes more than 440,000 deaths annually. A large portion of these statistics is children, as asthma can escalate from benign to extremely severe often within a very short window of time.For parents, pediatric illnesses can be devastating, as they often have to rely on emergency nursing or on-call physician lines, or go to the emergency department, which frequently have hours-long wait times. Therefore, devices like this can significantly help improve quality of life for both child and parent by acting as a first source of triage to determine next steps.Another example is a recent AI driven software that can analyze ear drums to determine if there are signs of infection. Ear related conditions are among the mos...