The Hospital of the Future: Palomar Medical Center

Palomar Medical Center (PMC) is one of the most technologically-advanced hospitals in the United States. The new $956 million USD hospital officially opened its doors in August 2012. The innovative facility has been dubbed by PMC officials and others as “The Hospital of the Future.” According to Orlando Portale, PMC’s chief innovation officer [1]: We used a lot of evidence-based design principles to improve the patient experience and the staff experience. It is a radical departure in design. For example, the 740,000-square-foot, 288-bed hospital has done away with traditional nurse stations. Instead, there are nurse stations outside of patient rooms, where they can do charting while keeping on eye on the patient. Staff are equipped with phones that run over the Internet, allowing them to get real-time patient information. Additional innovations aimed at improving patient care include: Patient wrist-worn devices that measure vital signs and allow for continuous and remote wireless monitoring Infrared technology that illuminates faucets when someone enters a patient room, reminding them to wash their hands Hydraulic lifts built into the ceiling to help staff with heavier patients Standardized designs so the equipment is located in the same place in every room Palomar Health Chief Nurse Executive Lorie Shoemaker said [2]: Patients being awakened from much needed sleep to have their vital signs taken will become a thing of the past. Rather than checking vita...
Source: Highlight HEALTH - Category: Medical Scientists Authors: Source Type: blogs