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Summary - Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers Cost

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Summary - Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers Cost

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Pressure ulcers have a significant impact on patients and healthcare systems. "Medicare estimated in 2007 that each pressure ulcer added $43,180 in costs to a hospital stay" (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, n.d.). Pressure ulcers can also be extremely painful and may leave permanent damage to the skin and underlying tissue.

Turning patients every 2 hours has become one of the gold standards in pressure ulcer prevention. However, this standard was established during the time of Florence Nightingale in the 1850s. Perhaps it is time for a new innovative product to evaluate patients turning needs on an individual basis.

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This sensor monitors and records patient position and notifies staff when interventions are needed to achieve high compliance to turn protocols (Leaf Healthcare, 2017).

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This technology seems easy to use:
1. The wireless, disposable sensor attaches to the patient's upper torso.
2. A separate antenna plugs into a wall outlet and provides a reliable wireless network.
3. The Leaf interface allows staff to visualize more clearly the need to turn a patient.

However, it must be connected to the Electronic Health Record. Anytime, new technology is connected to an EHR, there is always the potential for it to function incorrectly.

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One pro of this innovation is that unlike many electronic devices, it has no audible alarm when the patient needs to be turned decreasing the chance for alarm fatigue. Instead, it uses a simple color bar to visually assist the nurse in recognizing who needs to be turned.

The con of such an innovation is that if utilized poorly, it can become simply a tool to be audited with punitive repercussions instead of the aid that it is meant to be.

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The product gives the bedside nurse another pair of eyes in patient care. Especially when caring for five patients, it is difficult to always know who is consistently self-turning and who needs assistance. This product answers that question making the nurse more efficient. Additionally, it helps the nurse provide high-quality turns by giving visual cues as to whether the patient is turned appropriately, making the nurse more effective. Having a product the assists the nurse towards increased efficiency and effectiveness is a win for the patient and the facility.

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Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (n.d.). Preventing pressure ulcers in hospitals: Are we ready for this change? Retrieved October 9, 2017, from https://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/systems/hospital/pressureulcertoolkit/putool1.html

Leaf Healthcare. (2017). Innovating patient mobility monitoring. Retrieved October 9, 2017, from http://www.leafhealthcare.com/solution.cfm