Interactive patient care (IPC) refers to an approach in health care that puts the emphasis on providing entertainment and educational resources to the patient bedside via the in-room TV. The technologies can provide interactive services that are personalized to the patient’s condition and provide healthcare workers with patient education, pain assessment

Pain assessment

Pain is often regarded as the fifth vital sign in regards to healthcare because it is accepted now in healthcare that pain, like other vital signs, is an objective sensation rather than subjective...

 and medication teaching. IPC solutions can also integrate with traditional EMR

Electronic Health Record

An electronic health record is an evolving concept defined as a systematic collection of electronic health information about individual patients or populations...

and hospital IT systems such as Cerner, McKesson, and GE Healthcare, for example, but are more directly patient-centric applications, whose delivery at the point-of-care, helps hospitals meet service and quality requirements.

Clinical uses of Interactive Patient care technologies

• Patient Education
• Medication Teaching
• Patient Safety & Quality
• Patient Satisfaction

Nonclinical uses of Interactive patient care technologies

• Discharge Planning
• Dietary Services
• Operational Efficiency
• Entertainment Amenities

Benefits

Interactive Patient Care improves the satisfaction and outcomes for both the patient and hospital. Patients experience improved outcomes through better education and empowerment to effect the care experience. Hospitals and caregivers are able to deliver more efficient and consistent education and care to their patients while improving operational efficiency.

The state of the market

Projections for the growth of the Interactive Patient Care market are optimistic, and much of this optimism is predicated upon the increasing demand from the growing elderly population as well as the newly insured population (created by the recent health care reform).