People living with dementia are more likely to visit the emergency department than are people who do not have dementia, with the main causes being falls and other accidents, as well as mood fluctuations, day-night reversal and other behavioral disturbances. These patients are also more likely to experience adverse patient safety events when they are at the hospital, contributing to poor outcomes for the patients themselves and endangering provider and patient safety.
This is why many acute care hospitals use patient sitters, who provide one-on-one care for agitated and disoriented patients. In September 2022, The University of Alabama at Birmingham Medicine began a Virtual Sitter Program to provide an additional layer of safety for patients in some areas of the hospital…
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