Post-acute care facilities are faced with an increasingly competitive market that requires facilities to set themselves apart with higher quality resident care but also improved financial performance in a field witnessing over capacity. Frost & Sullivan has identified contact-free continuous monitoring (CFCM) as a new technology to address these challenges.  This solution transmits real-time data captured at the resident’s bed directly to staff, and instantly alerts when values fall outside of pre-set parameters in order to intervene before a resident becomes critical and requires rehospitalization.

Frost & Sullivan’s new white paper, Technology as a Competitive Edge for Post-Acute Providers, highlights how this technology has proven effective at reducing rates of rehospitalization by lowering the incidence of falls and earlier identification of residents who are deteriorating, all while avoiding audible alarms in the resident’s room.

In CFCM, a sensor is placed under the bed mattress or within a chair cushion to monitor resident vital signs and motion continuously. The data are relayed to the nurse workstation and mobile devices such as smartphones, so the staff is instantly aware of changes giving them time to assess and treat the resident within the post-acute facility reducing the likelihood of rehospitalization from clinical deterioration, fall, or pressure ulcers.

The paper suggests the average post-acute facility could increase its revenue by 22 percent and profit by 13 percent by installing CFCM in its existing beds, thereby allowing more medically complex residents to be admitted to the facility. This number is equivalent to a revenue increase of approximately $3.6 million per facility. However, if CFCM were applied in a similar fashion across all U.S. post-acute care facilities, Frost & Sullivan estimates the industry could expect an increase of approximately $40 billion in revenue. This additional revenue would be driven by a shift of more medically complex residents with higher reimbursement rates being cared for in a post-acute care setting instead of a hospital or at home. In addition, this transition could be expected to add $7.66 billion in profits to the post-acute industry which could be used, in part, to make investments in staff, infrastructure and technology.

“In the coming decade we anticipate growing investments in post acute care beds in the United States.  In order to retain and grow their position in the care continuum, post-acute care facilities must adopt proven technologies that can demonstrate improved outcomes and support the financial sustainability of their operations. Post-acute care facilities have the capability to adapt to the level of service that their patient populations need, including services provided today in higher-cost settings,” explains Frost & Sullivan Transformational Health Consulting Director, Charlie Whelan. “Continuous patient monitoring which was once considered the domain of acute care hospitals is now available as an affordable solution with CFCM.”

While adoption of CFCM in post-acute care is still new, the facilities interviewed by Frost & Sullivan report positive results. In 2017, the Allure Group decided to begin the process of installing EarlySense's CFCM systems in 1,500 beds located in all six facilities in New York City. "The decision to implement CFCM was an extension of our ongoing commitment to provide the highest quality care for our residents, as well as peace of mind for their families," states Melissa Powell, LNHA, Chief Operating Officer of Allure Group. "By alerting us to potential early signs of risk, continuous monitoring has helped us reduce falls and hospital readmissions. The contact-free aspect is especially useful as our residents appreciate not having to be hooked up to wires. We are able to admit and care for more complex patients and our staff benefits from a monitoring system that is highly accurate and easy to use."

Benefits of CFCM include:

Frost & Sullivan’s research identified a number of important benefits CFCM can deliver to post-acute care facilities:

•           Extending facility capabilities to support more medically complex residents

•           Lowering readmission rates thanks in large part to reduced rates of falls, pressure ulcers, resident deterioration and other events

•           Improving quality of care and staff efficiencies

•           Helping facilities achieve higher Five Star ratings which will allow them to more effectively compete for residents

•           Creating better documentation to improve revenue cycles

To download the complimentary whitepaper, please visit: http://frost.ly/23k.