Together with Philips and the Catharina Hospital in Eindhoven, TU/e has started a study on the use of smart plasters in the nursing ward. The researchers are looking at whether this innovative tool will allow nurses to spend less time on daily, manual measurements. Patients who suddenly deteriorate during their stay in the hospital will possibly be noticed earlier by the smart plaster.
Over the next few months, all patients admitted to the surgical oncology (cancer) unit in the Catharina Hospital will have a patch taped to their chest upon entry. The smart patch measures heart rate and breathing, among other things, every five minutes. That data is automatically sent securely to a data system. This could help nurses to spot a complication earlier, while also saving them time as they no longer have to take these measurements three times a day themselves. This would free them up to see to other - often more important - care tasks.