An electronic patient monitoring system that would alert the nursing staff when a patient (or patients) is leaving the nursing unit would be a welcome aid in the care of Alzheimer's disease patients. The system design is based on a wrist watch size radio transmitter, worn by the patient, with each transmitter having a different modulating frequency. A detector unit, placed at the two exit locations, would sense the presence of any patients in these exit areas. The detection of a patient's transmitter would activate an alarm at the nurses' station and would also generate a display giving the area and the name of the exiting patient. This system would be built for the 12 E Aging PCU but would also be of use for other units having similar needs.
