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Patients snooze as Webcams replace predawn exams
EHR Connection, September 24, 2007
Patients in the intensive care unit at three Swedish Medical Center facilities in Seattle are no longer forced to wake for pre-dawn examinations, because their doctors can monitor them from afar via remote Webcams and monitors, according to a September 17 Newsweek article.
Swedish Medical is among an increasing number of hospitals using a radical form of outsourcing that relies on technology and doctors stationed off-site to monitor critically ill patients. One doctor, working from a post (resembling the interior of an air-traffic tower) is able to observe multiple patients at all three hospitals remotely by viewing monitors and Webcams. Patients get more rest without the predawn interruptions, and they're receiving better medical care, says Swedish Medical president Rodney Hochman.
Remote system monitors supplement on-site medical staff with trend-tracking software that provides early warning signs of problems. "The heart and soul of the technology is 'smart alerting' that lets you know that a patient is not doing well before an alarm bell starts to go off," says Hochman. If a problem develops, audio, visual, and data connections alert remote observers who then speak directly with nurses and medical residents on the ward or in the patient's room.
To read the Newsweek article click here.
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