In this thoughtful article published in Forbes, Robert J. Szczerba discusses what happened to Matt Whitman on April 7, 2003, the need for continuous electronic monitoring of all patients receiving opioids, and what the National Coalition to Promote Continuous Monitoring of Patients on Opioids is doing to improve health outcomes and patient safety.

Referring to the Forbes article, RT Magazine makes this case for why continuous patient monitoring is needed:

For patients in pain, opioids can be invaluable to their well-being and recovery.  However, their use comes with many risks.  Too often, patients in the hospital receiving opioids for pain suffer from respiratory depression that leads to injury or death.  Left alone, behind closed doors or at the end of a hallway, these patients can quietly stop breathing and slip away, only to be discovered when it’s too late.

A solution to this problem exists, and can be found in continuously monitoring all patients on opioids through a wide range of available technologies.

For Matt Whitman’s own article on how a nurse saved his life and why hospitals should be required to continuously electronically monitor, please click here.

Matt also wrote this letter in response to Dr. Danielle Ofri editorial in the NY Times.

• Opioid Safety
• Respiratory Compromise