September 3, 1999
Patients admitted to Paradise Valley Hospital with cardiac and pulmonary conditions, as well as others requiring continuous monitoring of vital signs, are now being constantly monitored by a registered nurse. Thanks to the new Data Critical Stat-View system, patient's vital signs are constantly transmitted to hand-held communicators that nurses carry.
"We are the first hospital in San Diego County to go online with this type of system. It has improved the quality of care we provide to our patients while saving time and money," said Sally Baron, R.N., Director of Medical/Telemetry Services at Paradise Valley Hospital.
With the StatView receivers, the nurse can see the triggering waveform in less than 10 seconds if there is a change in a patient's heart rhythm. The nurses uses the wireless communicator to immediately view that patient' vital signs and respond appropriately. If vital signs become life-threatening, every nurse using a StatView communicator is immediately alerted. Hospital officials estimate that the new system can reduce response time by as much as 93 percent.
"By providing immediate notification of changes in heart rates and rhythm disorders, precious life-saving seconds may be gained," said cardiologist Albert Sharf, M.D. "These saved seconds can be critically important in providing necessary care more rapidly and improving the results."
"We've used the new system since April and our patients and staff are very pleased," Baron stated. "Patients have peace of mind that they are in constant contact with their nurse and the staff is more efficient and able to perform simultaneous tasks is more efficient and able to perform simultaneous tasks without compromising patient care."
Currently, there are up to 30 patients being monitored with the StatView system on a given day. The units store data for later reference and data can be printed out for inclusion in patient carts.
Data Critical Corp., based in Bothell, Wash., was founded in 1993 to bring Wireless Telemedicine and computing solutions to the health care industry. Data Critical manufactures and markets mission-critical personal information systems, including remote access systems and wireless systems that are facility based. Visit Data Critical's web site at www.datacritical.com.
For additional information about StatView and Paradise Valley Hospital's services, please call Paradise Valley Hospital Referral Services, (619) 470-4PVH(4784), or visit the web site, www.paradisevalleyhospital.org.
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