EarlySense - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The EarlySense System

The EarlySense system monitors patients who are not in intensive care. The system activates when the patient enters the bed. The system provides the real time health status of a patient for the duration of time the patient is in the bed. The information is displayed on a bedside monitor, on an LCD screen on the wall of the department, on a screen at the nurses' station and on the handheld devices of the nurses.
The system is contact-free; there are no leads or cuffs to connect to the patient.

The EarlySense system uses a single sensor placed under a hospital-bed mattress, to measure and record the vital signs of patients such as heart and respiratory rates and movements. It notifies when a patient gets in and out of bed. It alerts medical personnel when a patient's condition changes.

The EarlySense system alerts medical staff about the motion level of a patient and verifies patient turns by nurses. Identifying low patient movement and then turning patients methodically can prevent pressure ulcers. Pressure ulcers are one of the most costly patient safety risks in U.S. hospitals.

The EarlySense system is cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

and has a CE mark

CE mark

CE marking is a mandatory conformity mark for products placed on the market in the European Economic Area . With the CE marking on a product the manufacturer ensures that the product conforms with the essential requirements of the applicable EC directives...

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Studies showed the EarlySense system to be accurate in measuring heart and respiratory parameters in accordance with regulatory and industry criteria.

Clinical research

Study results reported in the Journal of General Medicine (JGM) in 2003 noted that slow transfer to the ICU of a medical or surgical ward patient who has shown deterioration increases the risk of death in the hospital.

The study, cited in the JGM in 2003, surveyed 285 U.S. hospitals including teaching and nonteaching institutions. Its authors observed an aggregate in-hospital mortality of 12% for ICU patients. Patients transferred from the ward to the ICU were noted to have a 20% to 65% in-hospital mortality rate. The authors also stated that patients transferred from the ward to the ICU are also much more costly to treat.

The authors of the article concluded: Slow transfer to the ICU of physiologically defined high-risk hospitalized patients was associated with increased risk of death.

Conversely, intensive care patients discharged too early are also at risk of deterioration because of complex care needs. A study was conducted by Chaboyer, Thalib, Foster, Ball and Richards to identify the types, frequency, and predictors of adverse events that occur in the 72 hours after discharge from an intensive care unit when no evidence of adverse events was apparent before discharge. Adverse events are defined as injuries or events that are due to health care management rather than to underlying disease and that result in prolonged hospitalization or some disability. A total of 147 adverse events, 17 (11.6%) of which were defined as major, were incurred by 92 patients (30.7%). Two predictors, respiratory rate less than 10/min or greater than or equal to 25/min and pulse rate exceeding 110/min, were significant independent predictors. The study investigators concluded in a report published by the American Journal of Critical care in 2008 that taking, recording, and reporting vital signs are important.

The Joint Commission

The Joint Commission, formerly the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), is a private sector United States-based not-for-profit organization.
The Joint Commission operates accreditation programs for a fee to subscriber hospitals and other health care organizations. The Joint Commission accredits over 17,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. The declared mission of the organization is "To continuously improve health care for the public, in collaboration with other stakeholders, by evaluating health care organizations and inspiring them to excel in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and value".

Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals, 2010 - Goals 9 and 14

The Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals 9, 14 and standard of care PC.02.01.19 require hospitals to reduce patient falls, pressure ulcers, and have a process for early recognition of patient deterioration.

External links

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