Accessible Home Vital Signs Monitoring System

Kristyn Eilertsen Adam Goodale Stephen KepperSunil Narayan Stacey Tarver

Group 22

BME 272

National Student Design Competition Sponsored by Rehabilitation Engineering Research

Center on Accessible Medical Instrumentation Problem: Increase in healthcare costs require the

need for medical tasks to be moved into the home Aim: Design an affordable, at-home vital signs

monitoring system, that can transmit medical information

Specs: collect 4-6 vital signs, store/retrieve data, easy to use, accessible at home

Project Background

The growing number of elderly people means even more stress will be placed on emergency rooms

Currently at home vital systems or personal nurses are too expensive for everyone to use

Changing the Face of Healthcare

Number of hospital emergency departments cut by 14% in 2005

ER visits reached a record high of 114 million, consisting primarily of the uninsured and elderly

US 65-and-over population has risen 9.6% over that same time period

Why target the elderly?

ER visits by Americans age 65 and over rose 26% in 2003

Medicaid patients were four times more likely to seek treament in an ER than those with private health insurance

Nursing home residents age 65-74 were five times more likely to visit the ER than non institutionalized seniors

Patient Challenges

Must accommodate patients with varying disabilitiesBlind Deaf ElderlyBed riddenMotor movement challengedLittle technology experience

Requirements

User friendly Cost effective Visual usage Audio usage Large responsive

user interface

Compact Aesthetically pleasing Fast response Telemedicine

Components

Multimodal home vital signs monitoring system Body temperature Weight Blood pressure Heart rate Respiration rate Computer

Blood pressure

Temperature

Breathing rate

Weight scale

Heart rate

Sensor Range and Accuracy Vernier Sensors

Very accurate Inexpensive Sensors

Blood Pressure Sensor Range: 0-250mm Hg, Accuracy: +/- 3mm Hg

Force Plate Range: 0 – 1000lb, Accuracy: +/- 0.25lb

Temperature Probe Range: -40C to 135C, Accuracy: +/- 0.2-0.5C

Breathing Rate Range and Accuracy: Contact Vernier

Heart Rate Monitor Range and Accuracy: Contact Vernier

Top Competitors

Philips SureSigns VS1 Vital Sign Monitor ~ $1982.70

GE DINAMAP ProCare 120 Monitor ~ $1821.50

Does not include weight measurement, data storage, or emailing capability

Device is heavy, difficult to read, and requires some training to use (i.e. Not designed for use by elderly)

Package Costs

Premium Package (computer, program, and all five sensors) ……………$1,051

Sensor Only Package (all five sensors and program only)……………………..$612

Vital Sign Package (heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure only)…$384

Our Product’s Advantages

Can be compartmentalized to address patient’s specific needs

Less than half the cost with full functionality

Capable of automated communication with Doctor or health professional

Designed specifically for the elderly

Software Component

Computer Program Stand alone program Compilation of Matlab

and Microsoft Visual C++

Large, easy-to-use graphic user interface (GUI)

Voice response capabilities

Communicates both results and directions

Data Acquisition Program

communicates with sensorvia USBsets sampling rate,

collects and stores data Displays results to

patient Stores data

Saved as date and time

Telemedicine

Emailing ResultsProgram creates email with attached resultsUses stored patient and doctor email address

in setup screenAbility to retrieve and send past resultsSecurity protected through username and

password

Conclusion

In the near Future….Continue formatting C++ and Matlab code Integrate sensorsTest sensor quality

Compare to actual medical devices

Create stand alone computer program