Improving clinical outcomes in the ICU

Over the past seven years, ICU-dedicated Remote Monitoring Centers have been created in a number of the top hospital systems in the United States. Over 30 eICU programs are in place in the United States with a capacity to monitor up to 5,000 patients. Combining clinical oversight with sophisticated software and monitoring equipment assists on-site physicians in identifying potential complications earlier and reducing mortality by up to 25%. The most commonly used software system to mange this remote care was designed by a team from Johns Hopkins University, and is marketed by VISICU (www.visicu.com). By using state-of-the-art ICU dedicated clinical decision support software, advanced hardware, and experienced critical care teams, the quality of care in ICUs in the United States has been dramatically improved.

Using remote monitoring to leverage world-wide shortage of intensivists

While many issues face the advancement of healthcare in the Middle East, access to highly trained health care providers is probably the most challenging. In the specialized fields of ICU and critical care medicine, this obstacle is shared by healthcare systems world-wide because the number of physicians and nurses who specialize in this area is exceedingly limited. However, new technology is allowing clinicians and other providers to effectively apply their knowledge and decision-making to large numbers of patients regardless of the geographic location of their patients. This new application is called remote patient monitoring, and can range from a simple telephone consultation to the co-management of seriously ill ICU patients.

This website will provide links to the published literature as well as the hospital websites currently using remote patient monitoring.

To learn more about the eICU or to get information on how to provide this service to an ICU at your hospital, please email us at info@SmartICU.com. For urgent issues, you may contact our administration at +1 312-388-2663.

For an excellent educational resource on the latest in ICU and Critical Care Medicine, please visit www.icumedicus.com. Users of ICUMedicus are able to exchange information, knowledge and ideas with other health care professionals and to access decision support tools and cutting-edge scientific information in the field of Critical Care Medicine.