Healthnet Global, a subsidiary of hospital chain Apollo Hospitals, has unveiled its smart in-patient room automation system that features remote patient monitoring and triaging.

WHAT IT DOES

Its latest hospital automation offering, AutoMaid, comes with motion sensors, including bed handrail sensors that patients can use to notify nurses. It has a communication pod that enables touch and voice commands allowing patients to control electric appliances and lights, as well as a mobile access to room services such as housekeeping, food and beverage, nursing and feedback.

Its main feature is a remote patient monitoring system with an AI-powered triaging system that captures vital parameters in real-time, which doctors can access through a centralised dashboard. The system allows health staff to track all patients' conditions in a single monitor or in a mobile app. Custom alerts can also be created to help providers focus on critical patients and deliver proactive care.

WHY IT MATTERS

The Indian healthcare system continues to be overwhelmed as it battles the COVID-19 pandemic while struggling with a workforce shortage. It was estimated that the number of active nurses and doctors in the country is around 6.1 and 10.6 per 10,000 patients, respectively, well below the World Health Organization's threshold. 

Dr Sangita Reddy, managing director of Apollo Hospitals, emphasised that contactless remote patient monitoring and triaging systems have become the health industry's "game-changers" that ease the burden on hospitals and healthcare professionals. "From COVID-19 patient care to post-surgical follow-up, to ongoing care management for patients with chronic illness, there is a dire need for a clinical-grade technology to provide quality of care safely and at scale," he stressed.

MARKET SNAPSHOT

The use of AI in remote patient monitoring (RPM) has been delivering operational efficiency and contributing to hospital safety amid an ongoing pandemic. Among the latest tech discoveries, a "baby detector" software developed by University of South Australia researchers was regarded as a significant breakthrough for RPM. The computer vision system in the neonatal intensive care unit has the same accuracy as an ECG machine in monitoring the vital signs of premature babies while also accurately detecting their faces. 

Meanwhile, US-based device maker Stasis Health's AI-powered bedside RPM system has recently come to India through local distributor Medtronic India. It renders round-the-clock vital signs trend data and uses AI to alert staff of patients' deteriorating conditions. 

Early this year, Australian firms Coviu and Propell Health introduced their combined telehealth and RPM offering for managing COVID-19 patients. It displays health data from Bluetooth-enabled medical devices and allows clinicians to receive real-time vitals while in a video call with a patient.

ON THE RECORD

"There is a huge potential for AutoMaid to bring about a paradigm shift in the healthcare system with contactless health monitoring and an AI-based early warning system. It can also help in monitoring at-risk patients at home and enabling doctors to continuously monitor their health," Apollo Hospitals' Dr Reddy claimed.