Hospital System Tracks Surgery Patients

A computer software system keeps track of the movements of surgery patients before, during, and after their surgery and displays their location on high-resolution monitors placed in strategic locations where they can be viewed by family members, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and nurses.

The monitors show the exact location of each patient, the elapsed time in each area, perioperative case status, and event progress. Hospitals using the system say it can dramatically reduce the need for phone calls and pagers to track the whereabouts of both doctors and patients. Surgeons and anesthesiologists can check the monitors to find when they are due in the operating room (OR). Nurses can check to see when a patient needs to arrive in the OR or be released from the recovery room. Updating is continually made by nurses and surgeons with a touch of a keypad. Even in the OR, every part of the procedure is tracked and recorded.

The system serves not only to relieve the anxiety of patients' family members but also helps doctors and nurses to be better organized and more productive. Called NaviCare, the system is the product of NaviCare Systems, Inc. (St. Paul, MN, USA; www.navicare.com).




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