In this profile, we share further information about Lenexa Medical and their LenexaCARE system that converts traditional bed mattresses into smart patient monitoring platforms – helping to prevent pressure injuries. This entry was awarded highly commended in the 2022 Future of Ageing Awards – Technology-Business category.
Lenexa Medical is a Melbourne-based medical technology company that was born out of the Biodesign Innovation course at the University of Melbourne in 2017. The company has developed a state-of-the-art technology solution to address the global unmet need to prevent pressure injuries before they develop, which are a significant issue in hospitals and aged-care facilities worldwide, costing the healthcare industry well over $100 billion.
Problem
Pressure injuries (PIs) or “bed sores” are preventable hospital-acquired complications that affect the most vulnerable patients, usually those who are elderly and are less mobile. PIs can cause significant pain, discomfort, and ongoing complications. Patients who develop a PI stay on average 4-6 days longer in the hospital, are 33% more likely to be readmitted within 30 days of discharge and have a mortality rate 5 times higher than patients without a PI.
In Australia, PI prevalence in hospitalised patients is 12.9%, with over 400,000 estimated cases of Pl a year, costing Australian public hospitals approximately $9.11 billion per annum. PIs are known to be a greater issue in long-term care facilities, where the prevalence of PI has been reported to be between 9-31%. Globally, the prevalence of PIs in hospitals is 12.8%.
Solution
Lenexa Medical has developed the LenexaCARE system, which uses embedded high-resolution fabric-based sensor technology to convert traditional healthcare mattresses into smart patient monitoring platforms. The system analyses the patient’s profile and uses proprietary machine-learning image recognition algorithms to detect the position that the patient is laying in and monitors a patient’s time and high-pressure areas in certain positions during their length of stay in a care facility. This provides clinicians and caregivers with essential information to deliver personalised pressure injury prevention.
“Research involved great collaboration and engagement ahead of rollout”
2022 Future of Ageing Awards judge
The LenexaCARE solution was developed with the users at the centre of the design. The team spoke with over 100 clinicians to determine the challenges they faced when trying to prevent pressure injuries, as well as the overall jobs to be done. A key requirement that came out from these interviews was that the system itself needed to be as seamless as possible for both the patient and the nurse. As such, the LenexaCARE mattress sensor has been designed to be indistinguishable from any regular hospital mattress.
| LenexaCARE | Wearable PI prevention system |
| ‘Nearable’ technology | Adhesive wearable technology |
| Runs continuously | Requires user installation and setup each time |
| Integrates into existing workflow | Requires clinicians to open a separate app |
| Indistinguishable to patient | Adhesive and wearable not suitable or comfortable for all (Sensor stuck on the chest may induce high pressure when in a prone position) |
| Sensor lasts 2 years+ | Sensor lasts 7 – 16 days and needs re-application |
| High-resolution data: over 7,000 points of data to generate an image of patient positioning. >99% predictive accuracy of patient position. | Lower-resolution data: measures a single data point for the relative position in 3D-space to predict position. No mention of the accuracy rate. |
| Able to identify body parts in contact with the surface | No localization of body part data |
| Identifies high-pressure areas for patient | No capture of pressure area data |
Outcomes
The LenexaCARE system received Australian approval in 2022 and has been in trial at two large Australian hospitals for the past 12 months, collecting over 20,000 hours of observational data and demonstrating a >99% accuracy in patient position. The solution has the potential to significantly reduce the occurrence of PI in hospitals and aged-care facilities worldwide, improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs.
Why it was awarded
Lenexa Medical’s LenexaCARE system provides a modern-day solution to a significant unmet medical need for pressure injury prevention. The company’s approach, which focuses on the needs of the users, has resulted in a seamless and practical solution that has the potential to save the healthcare industry billions of dollars while improving patient outcomes.
Entries for the 2023 Future of Ageing Awards open May 1, 2023 – For further information.
Thanks to those companies who have shown their support for the awards through a partnership. They are listed below:
