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Clinical Decision-Making: Observing the Smartphone User An Observational Study in Predicting Acute Surgical Patients'
Richard Hoffman1, Simon Harley2, Samuel Ellison2
1Department of Surgery, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. richard.hoffmann@sa.gov.au.
Journal of Hospital Medicine
|October 26, 2017
Summary
Patients using smartphones during surgical assessment were significantly more likely to be discharged the same day. This simple observation can aid clinicians in determining patient suitability for same-day discharge.
Area of Science:
- Medical assessment
- Surgical outcomes
- Patient well-being
Background:
- Accurate clinical assessment is crucial for acutely unwell patients.
- Over-reliance on investigations can overshadow clinical observation.
- Smartphone use is prevalent, even in healthcare settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate smartphone use as a surrogate marker for patient well-being.
- To determine if smartphone use predicts same-day discharge suitability.
- To assess the relationship between smartphone use and hospital readmission.
Main Methods:
- Prospective observational study at a tertiary hospital.
- Inclusion of patients admitted to the acute surgical unit.
- Recording smartphone user status, duration of stay, and demographic data.
Main Results:
- 11.3% of 221 eligible patients used smartphones.
- Smartphone users were 5.29 times more likely to be discharged on day 1.
- Smartphone users showed a trend towards lower readmission rates.
Conclusions:
- Smartphone use can serve as an additional indicator for same-day discharge.
- This finding supplements traditional clinical assessment skills.
- Further research may validate smartphone use as a predictive tool.
