Evolution of Tele-ICU

Michael Ries MD, MBA, FCCM, FCCP, FACP, Medical Director, Adult Critical Care and eICU, and Cindy Welsh, RN, MBA, VP, Adult Critical Care & Medical Prof. Affairs, Advocate Health Care. Advocate Health Care initially invested in tele-ICU medicine technology to provide additional monitoring and faster responses to acute medical problems with the intent of reducing mortality, adverse events, costs and length of stay.  Advocate quickly realized that the tele-ICU technology could also provide population management of evidence-based guidelines, use gap analysis for clinical applications such as ventilator liberation and multidisciplinary rounds, oversee resident handover of patients, and mentor newly hired nurses.  Dr. Ries and Cindy discuss the use of this technology in realizing clinical and financial goals in Critical Care.