Contact:
Kelly Pahl
314-996-7739
kpahl@bjc.org
Sept. 19, 2011 — Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital has a partner to provide additional care and support in the intensive care unit. Beginning September 13, Advanced ICU Care, the nation’s largest independent provider of tele-ICU, is using telemedicine, board-certified intensivists, and a process improvement program to deliver around-the-clock coverage for the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit.
“We are excited to partner with Advanced ICU Care in offering this valuable service to our patients,” says Larry Tracy, chief operating officer, Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. “They have a proven track record of helping hospitals provide high quality patient care in the ICU. We are committed to providing the best possible care to our patients, and we see Advanced ICU Care as an important partner in helping us achieve that goal.”
Advanced ICU Care’s team of board-certified intensivist-critical care physicians trained to care for patients in ICUs - and critical care nurses work remotely in the company’s monitoring center, supporting the hospital’s medical and nursing staff in the ICU. These clinicians work 24 hours, seven days a week using sophisticated technology and electronic monitoring capabilities to provide advanced expertise and support. Each ICU patient has an intensivist physician consultant who rounds on patients daily. These activities augment the care plans administered by the hospital’s bedside physicians and are expected to improve patient outcomes and efficiency.
“Given the shortage of intensivists, it’s difficult for hospitals to provide 24/7 intensivist coverage. Advanced ICU Care has made it possible to provide on-going intensivist coverage and support in the ICU. Having extra pairs of eyes watching over patients reduces complications. A critical care program like this makes sense,” said Dellice Dickhaus, MD, Advanced ICU Care medical director.
Advanced ICU Care intensive care specialists constantly analyze Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital’s patient data using technology that allows for early detection of potential complications through automated tele-monitoring e-alerts. Working in collaboration with the hospital, Advanced ICU Care clinicians have real-time access to a dashboard view of key patient information such as vital signs, heart monitor, medications, lab results and the patient’s entire medical history. Real-time video feeds and communications tools connect clinicians with patients, families and staff at a moment’s notice
With patient privacy a top priority, Advanced ICU Care’s critical care physicians are always available via two-way video in the patient’s room. The connection is secure and is only activated when a question or a medical situation demands action and a bedside physician is not present. No video is ever stored. While the Advanced ICU Care intensivists keep watch over patients, each patient’s care will continue to be directed by the local, bedside physician. The intensivist and the bedside physician will also be keeping each other informed of the patient’s progress.
Studies have shown that care provided by intensivists, whether at the bedside or via telemedicine technology, greatly increases the quality of ICU care — resulting in lower mortality rates, shorter hospital stays and fewer complications. In fact, studies in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the New England Healthcare Institute (NEHI) document a 40 percent reduction in mortality through tele-ICUs and recommendations for adoption of best practice standards by all hospitals with 10 or more ICU beds.
“We are pleased to partner with physicians and clinicians at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital to provide additional clinical surveillance and support of their critically ill patients,” said Mary Jo Gorman, MD, MBA, chief executive officer of Advanced ICU Care. “This strong alliance of critical care expertise combined with the most advanced telemedicine technology will work together to benefit and improve the health and safety of these patients.”
About Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital
Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital has been bringing high-quality health care to West St. Louis County since 1989. The hospital provides comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic services, a Heart and Vascular Center, pulmonary function, radiology, Siteman Cancer Center, a Sleep Disorders Center, and physical therapy and rehabilitation, as well as a full range of inpatient and outpatient surgical procedures including colorectal, urology, orthopedics, plastics, ENT and ophthalmology. As part of its dedication to excellence, Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital is a member of BJC HealthCare and is aligned with Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine. For more information, visit www.barnesjewishwestcounty.org
About Advanced ICU Care
Advanced ICU Care ® is the largest independent provider of tele-ICU services and has managed more programs in more hospitals than any provider in the nation. Through experienced clinicians, supported by cutting-edge telemedicine technology and a process improvement program, Advanced ICU Care provides continuous ICU patient monitoring and improved care and safety outcomes to critically ill patients. Hospital ICUs are linked with Advanced ICU Care's Monitoring Center, allowing Advanced ICU Care's board-certified intensivists (critical care medicine physicians) and critical care nurses to monitor hospital ICU patients from a central location. For more information, visit:
www.icumedicine.com.