The CSIRO hospital without walls home telecare system

Abstract

Home telecare uses a number of telemedicine technologies used for caring for patients in their homes rather than in the hospital system. To provide continuous monitoring of vital signs with minimal disruption of a normal lifestyle, we have developed an ultra-low power wireless and sensing system which may be installed in the home. The system is built around a two-way, 2.4 GHz radio system including miniature patient-worn units. A PC and small base station in the home collect and upload information to a monitoring centre at regular intervals, or in response to defined events. The system is designed to be installed in a home for periods of monitoring as a replacement for more expensive institutional care. The initial clinical application is a group of elderly patients who have presented following a number of idiopathic falls. In order to both detect a fall and determine its cause (which may be cardiovascular), the wearable radio system is equipped with accelerometers and equipment for measuring heart rate. A web-based distributed information system for caregivers incorporates automatic recognition of events or trends requiring intervention. The system is currently undergoing preliminary clinical trials.