Healthcare personnel try to prevent bedsores by turning patients every three hours. The patient has to be woken up for that purpose. “That’s really annoying, especially at night. And in particular for people suffering from dementia,” says Eurlings. “It can be very scary for them. And patients sometimes cannot fall asleep again. Not to mention that repositioning is superfluous in around 40% of cases, because many people are able to change position unaided.”

The Bossy smart mattress ensures greater efficiency in healthcare. Pressure sensors in the smart mattress make it possible to determine how long someone has been lying in the same position. “So patients are woken up less often and healthcare personnel can reposition patients during the day only if absolutely necessary.”

Drastic reduction in false alarms

The market is graying and healthcare is under constant pressure. As an extra watchful eye, the smart mattress also helps healthcare institutions detect wandering. “People with dementia have a particular tendency to wander at night,” Eurlings admits. “Many institutions make use of sensors next to the bed. These sensors detect motion, such as when someone gets out of bed, but also when a pillow falls off the bed. False alarms like this waste a lot of caregivers’ time.”

Using the smart mattress reduces the number of false alarms drastically. “The caregiver and the patient decide between them when an alarm needs to be activated,” Eurlings explains. “For example, that the alarm should go off only if the patient has been out of bed for more than five minutes. A visit to the toilet does not automatically result in an alarm, but only if the patient stays out of bed too long. If the alarm does go off, a member of the nursing staff will need to check on the patient. There are virtually no more false alarms, so the smart mattress alleviates the workload.”

How does the smart mattress work?

The alarms link to all call systems and platforms. Data sent from the module or call system are visualized via an app on the caregiver’s mobile phone. The caregiver can then decide what specific assistance the client needs. “The sensors are fully integrated into the mattress, so the measurements are very accurate,” says Eurlings. “We use three types of pressure sensors. If one of the sensors detects that the patient is out of bed and another does not, the alarm does not go off. This control mechanism ensures that the reliability of the notifications is virtually 100%.”

No extra costs

The smart mattress has another major financial benefit for healthcare institutions. “We offer the smart-ready mattress for the same price as a comfortable foam mattress. The healthcare institution can decide when it wants to use the smart functionality. Only then does the institution pay an amount per mattress per day.”

Connected by KPN

The smart mattress can be managed in various ways. “Flexibility is important for us,” says Eurlings. “Healthcare institutions can link the mattresses to their existing platform or they can use our management platform.” There are also various options in the domain of connectivity. “The first prototype made a connection via WiFi, but the latest version of our smart mattress also supports LAN, Bluetooth, Dect and LTE-M, and can send alerts by means of a potential-free contact.”

“Different institutions also have different preferences with regard to the communication protocol used,” Eurlings continues. “The KPN LTE-M network is always available and has a good range. That isn’t always the case with WiFi, so we’re dependent on the situation in the customer’s locality. In conjunction with the institution we always choose the best solution.”

KPN IoT supplies the connectivity for the latest version of the smart mattress. KPN IoT also acts as knowledge partner. “They give us advice on issues such as developing the product and the go-to-market strategy. KPN’s expertise complements ours and we really enjoy our contacts with KPN. KPN has an excellent reputation. Our partnership gives healthcare institutions confidence.”

Certified

The Bossy smart mattress complies with European laws and regulations and has CE marking. Deron has ISO 13485 certification. “The mattresses have been tested extensively at various healthcare institutions and the reactions we are getting are all positive,” says Eurlings. “Shortly before the test phase we added bed edge detection. The effect of this is that pressure on the sensors indicates that the client is sitting on the edge of the bed and wants to leave the bed. This is of course to give more information to caregivers.”

Smart connectivity and more efficient healthcare

We do it together. The idea of a smart mattress first occurred in 2017. The solutions have been perfected meticulously in the last few years. Following a successful test phase, Deron is now preparing for a full-scale launch. “We are putting the Bossy smart mattress on the market in the fourth quarter of 2022,” Eurlings announces. He hopes that the healthcare sector will welcome this innovation with open arms. “Apart from making healthcare more efficient, we can improve the quality of life of so many people with this product.”

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