AugmenTech proposes to develop low cost, wireless instrumentation to monitor the frequency and duration of body turning by elderly nursing home residents who are bedfast and clinically at risk for the development of pressure sores. This instrumentation should facilitate both the better diagnosis of 'at risk' residents and the improved management of a turning program once initiated for those residents deemed most at risk. During phase 1, we will validate the effectiveness of a research-grade, wristwatch size, patient worn telemetry system to detect nursing home resident body turns during the night - both turns initiated spontaneously by the residents and those initiated by nursing aides as part of intervention programs. We will also continue investigating whether our instrumentation can distinguish between residents who truly need turning intervention to prevent the development of skin ulcers and those for whom such programs are wasteful or counterproductive. Also during phase 1, we will develop a prototype low cost sensor for the commercialization of the wireless sensor telemetry system. We will refine a list of features needed for a pre-commercial system to be tested in phase 2 and solicit invitations to test this technology if phase 2 is approved.
