Remotely Managing Hospital Surge Capacity: The Masimo Solution

Even before COVID-19, hospital systems faced significant challenges, including increased costs, complex regulatory requirements, and personnel and physician shortages, among others. Now, as COVID-19 spreads across the nation, hospitals are scrambling to manage an influx of patients and deliver exceptional care in spite of shortages of staff, supplies, and space. 

Hospital surge capacity management is a critical component of every healthcare facility’s emergency plan. Typical surge capacity challenges, like a very busy day in the Emergency Department (ED), are confined to the department in question, and overflow isn’t an issue. 

When demand escalates to a state of contingency surge management, however, care teams may have to transform non-traditional, non-monitored spaces into the higher acuity settings needed to safely treat patients in areas that aren’t typically equipped provide such a level of care—for example, transforming a general floor into an ICU. 

In a crisis situation, such as that being experienced by many states during the pandemic, non-traditional areas like field hospitals and even the home may be called upon to house patients. In all three scenarios, remote monitoring capabilities can prove essential. 

Masimo SafetyNet^™ is an advanced, cloud-based patient monitoring solution that can help hospitals manage surge capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Masimo SafetyNet combines trusted Masimo Signal Extraction Technology^® (SET^®) tetherless pulse oximetry and continuous body temperature measurements with a cloud-based patient surveillance platform, plus a smartphone app for patients. Patients can track their physiological data using simple, wearable, noninvasive sensors while healthcare providers confidently and efficiently manage patient care remotely. 

While many hospitals already use some form of telemedicine to interact with patients, the Masimo SafetyNet Mobile App is unique because it’s designed to help patients track vital signs through wireless connection to their pulse oximetry and temperature sensors and manage changes in status with the aid of remote clinicians. Healthcare providers, in turn, use the web-based Clinician Portal to track patient compliance, stay informed about each patient’s condition, request status updates, and provide guidance when medical intervention is needed. This technology has become a key asset in the fight against COVID-19. 

In addition to oxygen saturation and pulse rate, the Masimo SafetyNet pulse oximetry sensor continuously measures respiration rate from the pleth (RRp^®), which may help clinicians keep track of a patient’s breathing without the need for an additional sensor. The chest-worn Radius T^º™ sensor, in turn, continuously measures body temperature, with in-app and remote notification if a customizable threshold is exceeded. Combined, Masimo SafetyNet seamlessly extends care beyond the boundaries of the hospital into the home—providing clinicians with a secure method for remotely managing their patients.