The LifeSync® Wireless ECG

The LifeSync® Wireless ECG system is designed to improve patient safety and hospital productivity in order to deliver better patient outcomes and lower costs for hospitals. The system collects the patient’s ECG data and transmits this data between the patient and bedside/transport monitor or diagnostic device with a universal, wireless link that is compatible with most ECG equipment. As a result, many patient care activities—such as patient transport, ambulation, turning the patient, and serial 12-lead acquisition—can be done more quickly and safely. The wireless patient transceivers are capable of transmitting 3-, 5- or 12-lead ECG signals up to 30 feet away from the monitoring device, enabling a new degree of patient mobility over a hard-wired system. The base transceivers can connect to most monitoring devices through the existing ECG trunk cable and lead set. In addition, the system uses a LeadWear® Disposable that replaces traditional, reusable ECG lead wires with a single-patient-use ECG sensor array. This can help reduce the risk of Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAI’s) by eliminating the possibility of cross-contamination from reusable ECG leads. The single-patient-use LeadWear® Disposable uses standard, detachable, disposable snap electrodes for attaching to the patient’s torso, which enables electrodes to be repositioned and replaced without having to discard the single-patient-use LeadWear®. For applications where the wireless transceivers are not indicated, LifeSync offers adaptors that are compatible with most ECG trunk cables. These adaptors connect the LeadWear® Disposable directly to the monitor. LifeSync has been delivering its Wireless ECG system to U.S. hospitals since 2004.

Patient Safety benefits seen when using the LifeSync system

...Hospitals report dramatic Improvement in Reduction in Nuisance ECG Alarms
The LifeSync^® Wireless ECG System uses a unique, patented LeadWear^® design, which improves signal quality by eliminating interference and by maintaining excellent electrode contact. This results in potential reductions in nuisance alarms and unscheduled time off monitor. [1] More accurate alarms can improve the quality of care and reduce the risk of adverse events by improving the vigilance of care givers. A LifeSync user hospital in Florida documented reductions in unscheduled time off monitor as high as 90%, and alarm accuracy improving from 30% to 87%. [2]

...Hospitals Report Dramatic Reductions in Infections
By using the LeadWear^® Disposables, the LifeSync^® Wireless ECG System eliminates contact between patients and reusable ECG leads, which have been found to harbor antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Studies have shown that as much as 74% of lead wires continue to harbor pathogens even after cleaning. [3] Departments that have implemented the LifeSync^® ECG System as part of their infection bundle have documented a significant reduction-and in some cases elimination-of certain hospital acquired infections. [4] 

Improved Hospital Productivity

The LifeSync^® System can follow a patient throughout the continuum of care, from the E/D through transport to critical care areas, procedure rooms and step-down units. The same patient transceiver can communicate ECG data with different monitor transceivers thus eliminating the need to disconnect and reconnect patients from one monitor to another or removing and replacing ECG wires between departments and devices.  For example, a patient being monitored at the bedside can have a 12-lead diagnostic test performed from a cart-based ECG machine while simultaneously being monitored via 5-leads at the bedside – without any ECG cables running from the cart or the monitor. When the patient needs to be moved to a different monitoring location, the patient transceiver is simply synchronized with the new monitor via a key-like 'token', without the need for removing and replacing any leads. LifeSync calls this unique ability: Sync'n Go. In settings such as the emergency department, the Sync'n Go feature can potentially reduce door-to-balloon STEMI times and save valuable heart muscle by reducing the time required for serial 12-lead acquisition. [5] In addition, since patients are no longer tethered to a monitor, they can be ambulated more easily and safely. Clinicians can also save time by not having to manage a tangle of ECG leads as well as dealing with lead-off alarms when treating the patient. A study by The Lewin Group found that the nurses in their study group saved an average of 3 hours per patient stay by replacing reusable leads with the LifeSync^® ECG System. Time saved managing wires and wire-related alarms can be spent caring for patients instead.

Cost Savings

Public and private payers are now refusing to reimburse hospitals for certain kinds of HAI's, which places an additional burden on hospital balance sheets. Even a slight reduction in infection rates can help reduce the costs of treating these infections. In fact, some LifeSync users have reported reductions of 30% or more after implementing the LifeSync^® Wireless ECG System as part of a comprehensive infection bundle, with significant cost savings as a result. A Norwich, Connecticut hospital reported a 12-month net savings in one ICU of over $200,000 while also effectively eliminating central line infections in the unit. In addition to helping reduce costs associated with HAI's, the LifeSync^® ECG System can contribute to cost savings as a result of fewer nuisance alarms, the hard costs associated with those alarms, time saved during patient transport, and other productivity improvements. All of these benefits can save valuable time that can be redirected to better patient care. Improving patient safety and quality of care can help hospitals meet their pay-for-performance quality objectives, reduce liability risk and the costs associated with that liability.

Any hospital interested in the LifeSync^® Wireless ECG System will be given an opportunity to clinically evaluate the system and document for themselves the impact on infection rates, productivity and patient safety. The company's sales representatives and clinical specialists are available to provide a custom consultation and demonstration of the System. Please call 866-ECG (324)-3888 or visit www.lifesynccorp.com.

References:
1| The Lewin Group; The Potential Benefits of a Wireless Electrocardiogram System for Inpatient Care, October 15, 2002.
2| Gandhi, Hetal; Sharma, Sonia; Gilski, Donna; Beveridge, Rebecca & Patel, Parag. Investigating Electrocardiography Lead Wires as a Reservoir for Antibiotic-resistant Pathogens. 9th Scientific Forum on Quality Care and Outcome Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke. Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge.  January 18, 2008.
3| Ibid.
4| Furtado, Debra L.; Heard, Robin; Kaye, Pamela & O’Connor, Sharon A. When Is Accomplishing Zero Outstanding?  Poster Presentation: American Association of Critical Care Nurses National Teaching Institute.
5| LifeSync Corporation White Paper, LifeSync® Wireless ECG System with LeadWear® Disposable Cable Replacement System Reduces Artifact and Increases ECG Alarm Accuracy, 2005.