Several hospitals have reported good experiences with video monitoring to reduce falls, including these two:
• Rockford Memorial Hospital in Illinois: In September 2011, administrators realized that certified nursing assistants (CNAs) were being pulled from the bedside to sit one-on-one with patients, which directly affected unit staffing. Patient falls were increasing due to lack of CNA staff for the units. On average 14.24 CNA positions were not available for staffing nursing units. In 2011 sitter utilization averaged 50 FTEs per pay period. The hospital began using a remote video monitoring system in November 2011 and increased its use through 2013. The falls rate decreased, and the overall sitter rate decreased. The average sitter FTE per pay period went from 42.8 in 2012 to 35 in 2014, with falls decreasing from 170 to 63 in that time period. The hospital used the AvaSys TeleSitter Solution, manufactured by AvaSure in Grand Rapids, MI.
• Premier Health in Dayton, OH: Over 15 months, the hospital used remote monitoring for an average of 6.5 patients per day, which resulted in $80,000 annualized savings from decreased use of sitters.
Injury falls per 1,000 patient days in 2013-2014 went from 0.83 pre tele-sitter to 0.47 post tele-sitter. The hospital also used the AvaSys TeleSitter Solution.
