Banner Boswell opens new area for 24/7 heart monitoring
SUN CITY, Ariz. (July 25, 2011) – Patients who need heart monitoring are resting easier at Banner Boswell Medical Center in Sun City thanks to the opening of a new Central Monitor Station.
The new monitor room is located on the fifth floor of the nonprofit hospital and contains five workstations that will enable technicians to monitor a total of 221 beds; 173 of which are in the hospital's telemetry care units (also referred to as progressive care).
Additionally, 48 medical and surgical beds throughout the hospital have been connected to the Central Monitor Station using new remote technology, allowing for continuous heart monitoring while patients are treated in the best unit to care for their primary condition.
"Centralized monitoring enhances patient safety by providing round-the-clock cardiac observation by specially trained technicians," said Terry Loftus, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Banner Boswell. "If our technicians observe any changes to the patient's condition, they are able to immediately communicate to the patient care team through a dedicated phone line that connects to each nurse’s station."
During progressive care or telemetry monitoring, technicians carefully observe each patient’s heart rate and rhythm.
“While we are always on the lookout for critical changes that are life-threatening, our goal is to catch the more subtle pattern changes – many of which may not trigger an alarm by the system,” Dr. Loftus noted. “While these changes may not be immediately life-threatening, they may indicate a change in clinical condition or a side effect of medication. By finding these changes earlier, we can intervene sooner and hopefully prevent any life-threatening rhythm changes.”
The project was funded by Sun Health Foundation through community support of the “Technology Today for Your Tomorrow” campaign.
“We are proud to partner with Banner Boswell Medical Center in support of its excellent patient care and service,” said Ron Guziak, Chief Executive Officer for Sun Health. “This technology is possible thanks to generous donations from our community. The central monitor station provides the ideal supplement to Banner Boswell’s exceptional patient care. We appreciate the community’s commitment to technological advancements that promote optimum safety in patient care delivery.”
For more information on ways to support Banner Boswell’s Cardiovascular Services program through Sun Health Foundation, visit www.SunHealthFoundation.org or call (623) 876-5330.
Banner Boswell Medical Center, located at 10401 W. Thunderbird Blvd. in Sun City, is a 501-bed campus specializing in heart care, cancer care, stroke care, orthopedics, acute rehabilitation, skilled nursing and emergency care. Supporting Banner Boswell’s mission of excellent patient care is the Sun Health Foundation, which encourages charitable giving to support the hospital. Banner Boswell is part of nonprofit Banner Health. For more information, visit www.BannerHealth.com/Boswell.
