As we enter 2021, our healthcare workforce is burnt out and badly in need of relief. With workforce shortages, new technologies armed with artificial intelligence may be the solution.
One thing we learned in 2020 is that without proper protection, the spread of COVID-19 is perilous. Many healthcare organizations are pushing to adopt AI (artificial intelligence) technology widely in 2021. COVID-19 has no doubt sped up the reason behind the desire to implement AI technologies because it keeps healthcare workers at a lower risk of contracting it and provides round the clock care for patients. Black Book Research surveyed 540 health information management executives, and 90% of them expect widespread implementation of AI in the next five years. The Third Annual Optum Survey on AI in Health Care reports that 83% of healthcare executives have an AI strategy in place, and another 15% are planning on creating one. In fact, 56% say they are accelerating or expanding their AI deployment timelines in response to COVID-19.
AI technologies like VSTOne provide round the clock continuous remote monitoring of patients with a risk of falling. This predictive technology alerts nurses 30-65 seconds before a patient intends to get up. Other devices, like bed sensors and cameras, send alerts after the patient has already fallen, which is too late. Injuries from these falls usually end up costing tens of thousands of dollars per patient, igniting an incentive to stop them altogether. Fifty-one percent of the survey respondents who are in late-stage deployment of AI technologies (i.e. deployed before COVID-19), believe they’ll achieve a return on their AI investments faster due to their pandemic response.
COVID-19 tested capacities at hospitals around the nation and wreaked havoc on healthcare workers as they found themselves with not enough PPE to keep them safe. We developed a turnkey continuous vitals monitoring platform that combines wearable technology, artificial intelligence, and VST’s cloud infrastructure to provide a comprehensive solution to caring for more COVID-19 patients without exposing staff to infection. VSTOne allows nurses to complete rounds remotely while ensuring they are alerted as soon as a patient begins to decline so they can focus on the patients who need immediate help.
The future of healthcare is here and it’s more accessible than ever!