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Lifeview has partnered with global Artificial Intelligence (AI) developer and disruptor EchoCare Technologies to bring the ECHO system to Australia and New Zealand.

Echocare Technologies develops non-wearable, non-intrusive, elderly-care, monitoring systems that automatically detect and alert on emergency and abnormal situations.  The ECHO device is currently installed in COVID-19 wards in Israel, monitoring breathing patterns of COVID-19 patients. The device capability can be used in hospital and aged care settings, both, residential and community, to assist staff to monitor and recognise COVID-19 symptoms early. It also will limit staff exposure to COVID-19 patients, as there is no need for close contact to be able to monitor infected patients.

The ECHO system is a connected smart device that constantly measures a person’s location, posture, motion and respiration to detect emergencies such as falls, respiratory distress or any changes in physical condition or routine that indicate a potential health deterioration.  The ECHO gets to know one or two people residing within a defined space within 48-hours. Based on a unique radar that doesn’t compromise privacy, ECHO covers an aged care room or retirement living apartment (including through walls) with a single device. 

Lifeview CEO Madeline Gall says, “Lifeview has partnered with EchoCare Technologies as we are always looking for new technologies and innovative ways to improve the lives of older Australians.  Resident wellbeing is our number one priority, being able to respond to an incident, or even better, prevent a fall or health deterioration will give peace of mind, and improve care and satisfaction for residents, their families and staff.”

“We understand there are various solutions already on the market, however most of these are either motion based, wearable or camera devices. However, when it comes to a senior’s private room or home, they are not always willing to wear a device 24/7 and they don’t like to have their privacy invaded”, Ms. Gall added.

“Following extensive testing of the device in a real life environment, it became apparent that it is exceeding our expectations”, Dmitry Shibanov, Lifeview’s Executive Manager - Innovation & Development says.

“The device is able to alert staff to any abnormal behaviour of the resident, such as out of the “normal” routine movements in their room, respiratory distress that may indicate a health matter such as COVID or influenza, anxiety and agitation episodes (based on hyperventilation pattern analysis), a decline in condition, advancement of dementia or delirium, and room exits. Based on this data, we were able to update the device algorithms to significantly enhance reporting of respiration patterns – including a deep analysis showing detailed stages of each breath, such as inhale/exhale time,” added Shibanov.

Rafi Zack, Co-Founder and CEO of EchoCare Technologies says, “We are very excited to have teamed up with Lifeview, not only are they a leading provider of aged care but they have an appetite for innovation and improving the lives of those entrusted into their care”. 

“With Lifeview’s aged care expertise we not only get a great partner and distributor in the Australasian region but we also get real life data and analytics as we continue to refine, enhance and grow the capabilities of the device”, Zack added.

Following successful implementation in aged care, the ECHO device will also be available for purchase or rental by older Australian’s and New Zealanders living at home (can be financed through a home care package) or in retirement living.  The device also has transferable applications in hospitals and prisons, where 24-hour monitoring is vital.

In addition to Lifeview, EchoCare Technologies also has strategic collaborations with key companies SMK Corporation (Japan), Incubit Technologies Venture (Israel), Centrica Innovation (UK) and Tigbur Group (Israel), as it rolls out the ECHO device globally.

EchoCare will have a virtual stand at LASA’s National Congress, starting Monday 12 October, where attendees can find out more about the product, as well as register an expression of interest in trialling the device.

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Key benefits of the ECHO system in the aged care setting:

• Falls are notified immediately to a carer/nurse via handheld device or other system at the home, no matter where in a room or bathroom the resident is – no need for sensor mats or expensive sensor flooring; residents who fall and can’t reach the call bell can be assisted immediately
• Resident privacy and dignity are maintained as staff do not need to wake or disturb residents during the night to check on them – ECHO will advise if something changes such as breathing; residents who can ambulate to the bathroom overnight without assistance can continue to do so, ECHO knows they are okay and do not need assistance
• If a resident has a change in habit, such as usually toilets twice overnight and this changes to say three, four or more times, ECHO picks this up, staff know to check for a UTI or other condition, picking it up early and saving the resident distress and most likely a trip to hospital
• As staff do not need to check every resident in every room overnight their time can be reallocated to residents who are needing assistance.  Conservative calculations estimate this can save 1 FTE overnight (assumptions are based on 5 minutes of time saved on overnight checks per resident in a 120-bed home)

How does ECHO compare to other monitoring technologies?

• Is non-wearable like a pendant or watch so can’t be removed
• Is ceiling mounted so can’t be unplugged
• One unit only needed for an aged care room, a unit or a house
• Monitors up to two people within the allocated space, recognising each person after only 48-hours
• Is not just a falls or movement sensor, it also measures breathing, gait and drowning
• Can analyse gait patterns and alert staff on acute or slow developing changes. It may also predict some falls through this analysis