Introducing artificial intelligence in acute psychiatric inpatient care: qualitative study of its use to conduct nursing observations

All patients admitted to an acute inpatient mental health unit must have nursing observations carried out at night either hourly or every 15 minutes, to ascertain that they are safe and breathing. However, while this practice ensures patient safety, it can also disturb patients' sleep, which in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Evidence-based mental health Vol. 23; no. 1; p. 34
Main Authors: Barrera, Alvaro, Gee, Carol, Wood, Andrew, Gibson, Oliver, Bayley, Daniel, Geddes, John
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: England 01.02.2020
Subjects:
Acute Disease
Adult
Artificial Intelligence
Humans
Monitoring, Physiologic - methods
Observation
Patient Safety
Psychiatric Department, Hospital
Psychiatric Nursing - methods
Qualitative Research
Schizophrenia & psychotic disorders
adult psychiatry
suicide & self-harm
depression & mood disorders
ISSN:1468-960X, 1468-960X
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:All patients admitted to an acute inpatient mental health unit must have nursing observations carried out at night either hourly or every 15 minutes, to ascertain that they are safe and breathing. However, while this practice ensures patient safety, it can also disturb patients' sleep, which in turn can impact negatively on their recovery. This article describes the process of introducing artificial intelligence ('digitally assisted nursing observations') in an acute mental health inpatient ward, to enable staff to carry out the hourly and the 15 minutes observations, minimising disruption of patients' sleep while maintaining their safety. The preliminary data obtained indicate that the digitally assisted nursing observations agreed with the observations without sensors when both were carried out in parallel and that over an estimated 755 patient nights, the new system has not been associated with any untoward incidents. Preliminary qualitative data suggest that the new technology improves patients' and staff's experience at night. This project suggests that the digitally assisted nursing observations could maintain patients' safety while potentially improving patients' and staff's experience in an acute psychiatric ward. The limitations of this study, namely, its narrative character and the fact that patients were not randomised to the new technology, suggest taking the reported findings as qualitative and preliminary. These results suggest that the care provided at night in acute inpatient psychiatric units could be substantially improved with this technology. This warrants a more thorough and stringent evaluation.
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ISSN:1468-960X
1468-960X
DOI:10.1136/ebmental-2019-300136