The ViSi Mobile is a wrist monitor that can measure the most important bodily functions of patients day and night (24/7). After almost 5 years of trial runs and scientific research, Radboudumc will now use this wrist monitor in 7 departments and 117 beds to improve patient safety. Research shows that thanks to the wrist monitor and the timely identification of patient deterioration, there are 32% fewer unplanned ICU admissions.

As a hospitalist on the front lines of COVID-19, I know firsthand how the homeostasis of a hospital is altered when community cases of COVID-19 increase. For example, emergency departments immediately enact novel pathways and protocols for triage, evaluation, and admission (1). Hospitals begin to assess and enhance inpatient capacity, often by opening units not traditionally used for general medical care (for example, postoperative care units) as COVID-19–designated areas (2). Additional tactics, such as decreasing elective surgical cases, merging specialized intensive care units (ICUs), and offering staff moonlighting opportunities to increase critical care capacity, are also pursued. And in short order, hospital command centers spring up to monitor patient flow, streamline communication, and coordinate activities ranging from patient visitation policies to media releases (3).

As personnel and funding shortages continue to increase pressure on healthcare services in a post-pandemic world, a new study published by the British Journal Of Anaesthesia suggests that ViSi Mobile remote patient surveillance technology holds the key to improved care and saving lives.

Anesthesiology journal podcast, an audio interview of study authors and editorialists. This podcast is a conversation with Jim Weathmill and Dr. Alparslan Turan, professor of anesthesiology and vice chairman of the Department of Outcomes Research in the Anesthesiology Institute at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.