Hospital beds are undergoing an upgrade to become a source of data

Hospital beds may soon be able to transfer information about patients, as one major manufacturer in the space is giving the medical equipment a major upgrade, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The transition will enable beds to sensor a patient’s vital signs 100 times per minute, and signals that hospitals are fully in the midst of a digital transformation.

Hill-Rom Holdings, a medical equipment manufacturer, is the company behind the upgrades, which can alert nurses when vital signs suggest deterioration in a patient’s condition. Other medical device companies are following suit.

At one time, hospitals were falling behind in the digital awakening, but years of playing catch-up by installing electronic medical records and internet-connected devices has led to a breakthrough––more than 80 percent of hospitals use EHRs, according to the American Hospital Association. By comparison, hospitals have come a long way from the 9.4 percent use rate in 2008.

The digital push is good news for vendors in the space, too, which see many opportunities to cash in.

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