Williamson Health

Patient monitoring systems can greatly impact patient safety and outcomes in an acute care setting. As technology continues to advance and adapt at a rapid pace, it is natural for hospitals to identify ways to leverage this technology in an effort to improve patient monitoring. Combining the fact that patients are often coming to us sicker and many organizations are still reeling from post-pandemic staffing challenges, patient monitoring is an area that continues to evolve. There are some key considerations to keep in mind when looking to expand or change patient monitoring processes particularly when it involves technology.

First, it is critical to consider the staff that will be responsible for effectively using and responding to patient monitoring. Including frontline staff in the decision making process may feel like an extra step on the front end, but it will provide substantial benefit with buy in and implementation on the back end. Additionally, it is important to consider that technology and patient monitoring systems often have a lot of great bells and whistles to alert staff to changes occurring with the patient. It is important to consider how these added alerts will support and interact with your current systems. Alarm fatigue is an additional challenge that hospitals must consider. Joint Commission has incorporated alarm safety as a National Patient Safety Goal. This is where including end users will be helpful as well to ensure any alerts or alarms are properly set to ensure that the clinician is alerted when necessary but not so overstimulated that the alert becomes part of the background noise in the patient care area.

It is also critical to consider how patient monitoring will fit within workflows and communicate with other systems such as the electronic medical record if the data from the system is to be documented. Are the systems interoperable and is it seamless? Some patient monitoring will transmit data directly into other systems including the electronic medical record which improves efficiency and reduces the risk of transcription errors or potential delays in reviewing data. However, organizations should consider how that affects the clinicians at the bedside. It may be reasonable to request that clinicians sign off or verify the data as it provides clues to all caregivers on the patient’s condition and response to treatment. Including those key stakeholders in the planning and implementation phase will help organizations identify and address potential gaps or pain points in advance.

Patient monitoring technology and systems are key components to supporting patient safety and improving patient outcomes. As healthcare organizations look to add and improve their current patient monitoring systems, it is critical to conduct a thorough review of the options available, consider how the patient monitoring system can be integrated into current practices and potential challenges, and engage with clinicians early to gain buy in and ensure the system will align with the organization’s patient safety efforts.