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Technology Assessment: EarlySense for Monitoring Vital Signs in Hospitalized Patients

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Technology Assessment: EarlySense for Monitoring Vital Signs in Hospitalized Patients

Investigators: Mark Helfand, MD, MPH, MS; Vivian Christensen, PhD; Johanna Anderson, MPHD

Evidence-based Synthesis Program (ESP) Center, Portland VA Healthcare System, Portland, OR

Washington (DC): Department of Veterans Affairs; May 2016


Download PDF: Report

The EarlySense Monitoring System has been developed to provide continuous monitoring of heart rate (HR), respiration rate (RR), and bed motion for patients in medical/surgical, oncology, orthopedics, isolation, post-partum, skilled nursing facilities, long term acute care, and rehabilitation settings.

The VA Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Policy and Services (10P) requested an independent evaluation from the VA Evidence-based Synthesis Program (ESP) to help guide the field as to EarlySense's monitoring capabilities, benefits and harms, impact on nurse staffing, and the overall effectiveness of the system. The USH seeks to better understand how this technology is being used in similar hospital settings in the US, what kinds of VA patients would be best served by it, and whether there are particular types of units or distribution of beds within those units for which this technology would be best suited.

The ESP review team searched for and critically appraised relevant studies and systematic reviews and interviewed key informants, including VA nurses who have experience with the EarlySense system.


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