The effect of early identification of and response to clinically deteriorating patients on the surgical ward by using automated continuous patientmonitoring on patientrelated outcomes.

Many hospitals introduced rapid response teams (RRT) to provide appropriate care to patients with deteriorating vital functions. Still the number of deteriorating patients, and accompanying healthcare costs, are high and can possibly be reduced by improving the process of early detection. According to care professionals, early detection is crucial to provide timely care. The objective of this single-centre randomised pilot study is to improve early detection of deteriorating patients and investigate the (cost)effectiveness od automated continuous monitoring of patients in hospital wards compared to usual intermittent nurse monitoring. The intervention is the EverOn system. 850 patients in 1 intervention ward and 850 patients in 1 control ward will be monitored. The primary outcome measure is unplanned ICU transfers, secondary outcome measures are cardiac arrests on the ward, patient mortality on the ward, number and intensity of RRT calls and perceived safety culture. An economic evaluation will provide insight into cost effectiveness of continuous automated monitoring compared to usual intermittent nurse monitoring.

Is automated continuous monitoring of vital signs of patients on the surgical ward more effective than standard practice (= intermittent monitoring)?

T=0 months; start of inclusions;

T=12 months; end of inclusions.

1. Automated continuous patientmonitoring;

2. Intermittent patientmonitoring.