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Hospital begins using electronic monitoring system in ICU

E-Health Trend Watch, February 9, 2007

The intensive care unit (ICU) at the Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital in Greensboro, NC, has started using eLink Critical Care, an electronic monitoring system designed by Baltimore-based Visicu, Inc. Doctors and nurses can monitor ICU patients' lab results, heart rates, breathing, and other factors from a dedicated control room. They also have access to remote controlled cameras in every room and the ability to talk with nurses caring for the patients. Computers track vital signs and alert the healthcare team when a patient's condition begins to deteriorate.

Moses Cone Health System expects patients to spend 4% fewer days in the ICU as a result. "Having eLink Critical Care is like having an intensivist in every ICU," said Joan Wessman, chief nursing officer at Moses Cone, in a statement. The $4.2 million project will be rolled out to monitor 97 intensive care beds now that Wesley Long Community Hospital, the Women's Hospital of Greensboro, and Annie Penn Hospital are using the system. Moses Cone Health System will not charge patients extra for the service.

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