"This new initiative brings UPHS to the forefront of cutting-edge technology focused on quality and patient care," says C. William Hanson, MD, Medical Director of the Penn E-lert program. "HUP and Pennsylvania Hospitals will set the mark on how to bring ICU care into the future, while at the same time, enhancing patient care." The Penn E-lert system is expected to cover all adult ICU beds in the health system, including those at Presbyterian Medical Center, within 24 months.
Penn E-lert features real-time data, audio, and video monitoring of ICU patients by UPHS intensivists and critical-care nurses, all from one central command center – every day, seven days a week, 365 days per year. The command center – located at 3440 Market Street, Suite 304 – is meant to supplement the on-site care provided in the ICUs by critical-care doctors and nurses, especially during off hours, such as nights and weekends. The eICU® technology is a patented product of VISICU, Inc., located in Baltimore, Maryland.
Penn E-lert will function like an air-traffic control center, providing assistance and guidance to the attending doctors, residents and nurses in the hospital ICUs. The system will be networked via voice, video, physiological monitors and other clinical data with the physicians and nurses in the hospital ICUs. "Penn is committed to enhancing care by utilizing the latest proven technology to more effectively manage a patient's stay in the ICU. Over time, we expect Penn E-lert to help us significantly reduce mortality, complications, length of stay in the ICU, and overall healthcare costs," adds Hanson.
Editor's Note eICU® is a registered trademark of VISICU, Inc.
You may also find this release online at www.uphs.upenn.edu/news.
About PENN Medicine
PENN Medicine is a $2.7 billion enterprise dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and high-quality patient care. PENN Medicine consists of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System (created in 1993 as the nation's first integrated academic health system).
Penn's School of Medicine is ranked #3 in the nation for receipt of NIH research funds; and ranked #4 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's most recent ranking of top research-oriented medical schools. Supporting 1,400 fulltime faculty and 700 students, the School of Medicine is recognized worldwide for its superior education and training of the next generation of physician-scientists and leaders of academic medicine.
Penn Health System is comprised of: its flagship hospital, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, consistently rated one of the nation's "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report; Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation's first hospital; Presbyterian Medical Center; a faculty practice plan; a primary-care provider network; two multispecialty satellite facilities; and home health care and hospice.
About VISICU
VISICU, Inc., a privately held company founded in 1998 by two intensivist physicians from Johns Hopkins, is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The patented eICU® solution enables hospitals to standardize ICU care across multiple hospitals and leverage scarce intensivist resources. From a centralized eICU facility, intensivists and nurses monitor and care for ICU patients through a high-fidelity telemedicine network that has been likened to air traffic control. Proprietary software is used to proactively manage patient care and electronically connect the "patient to the doctor", 24x7. A study of the eICU system published in the Journal of Critical Care Medicine (Crit Care Med 2004; 30:31-38) proved the clinical and financial benefits. The eICU solution is currently the only technology that enables hospitals to meet the Leapfrog Group's ICU patient care safety standards and is continually recognized for its technology innovations. In 2004, VISICU won the Microsoft Healthcare Users Group (MS-HUG) award; in 2002 the eICU solution was recognized as one of the Top 100 technical innovations by Info World magazine and in 2001, the company won the Healthcare Informatics and Technology Award. For more information, please visit www.visicu.com. eICU® and Smart Alerts® are registered trademarks of VISICU, Inc.