To help reduce fall risks and other safety concerns in hospitalized patients, Emory Healthcare is collaborating with Andor Health to bring virtual patient observer technology to its hospitals. The inpatient monitoring technology will provide an added layer of safety interventions for patients who need additional supervision and care.
“Andor Health’s virtual patient observer/virtual sitter technology expands our virtual health initiatives across Emory Healthcare, while reducing the burden of nurses and other team members,” says Jason Atkins, RN, vice president and chief clinical informatics officer for Emory Digital, a part of Emory Healthcare. “Currently, Emory nursing assistants, nurse technicians or other team members serve as patient sitters for some of our hospitalized patients.”
Andor Health virtual observers, working with registered nurses in a control center, use voice activation technology to talk remotely with at-risk patients and remind them to stay in bed, call for assistance or provide other guidance, while alerting Emory Healthcare staff on-site of safety concerns.
The monitoring services will be provided 24/7. Emory will implement the initiative in 32 inpatient rooms during the first year of the collaboration and plans to add the technology to 50 additional rooms in the second year.