GAINESVILLE, Florida—etectRx, Inc. (etectRx), a privately held silicon-enabled digital health sensor platform company, announced a first-of-its-kind pilot project with The Village at Gainesville, a retirement community. The pilot represents the debut application of eBrief, etectRx's patented intelligent incontinence monitoring system. eBrief is specifically engineered to mitigate the indignity and adverse health consequences associated with incontinence, while simultaneously enhancing the efficiency and job satisfaction of caregiving staff through real-time urinary incontinence monitoring. The pilot project commenced in early November with a group of residents from The Village at Gainesville's Azalea Trace Memory Care Community.
In the United States, more than half of senior care residents suffer from incontinence, a condition that presents considerable risks to aging individuals. It contributes to a range of health hazards, including falls, wounds, urinary tract infections (UTIs), pressure ulcers and the exacerbation of chronic conditions. In addition to the health hazards incontinence presents for seniors, it is also a significant driver of workforce challenges. In an article published by McKnights in June of 2022, it was reported that certified nursing assistants dedicate 56% of their work shift to addressing incontinence-related care, posing workflow issues for the 96% of senior care facilities experiencing staffing shortages.
“We are excited to collaborate with The Village at Gainesville,” said Eric Buffkin, CEO of etectRx. “Our mutual goals for the project are to reduce residents’ incontinence-related health risks and demonstrate increased job satisfaction and productivity for the staff who care for residents day in and day out. eBrief has the potential to revolutionize incontinence care, and we expect this pilot to produce strong results.”
The eBrief Intelligent Incontinence Monitoring System offers remote, real-time urinary incontinence monitoring through a small, disposable, battery-free moisture sensor embedded in standard adult incontinence products. When the incontinence product nears its absorption capacity, the eBrief sensor sends a low-power signal to a fixed reader, installed in the participating residents’ rooms. The reader communicates an alert to the system’s care dashboard installed in point-of-care locations and notifies staff when a resident’s brief needs to be changed. This alleviates the time-consuming and undignified process of manually checking the residents’ briefs and reduces the time a resident is exposed to a wet brief.
“Here at The Village at Gainesville, we are constantly looking for new ways to improve the quality of life for our residents,” said Vickie Rodenwoldt, director of assisted living at The Village at Gainesville. “This program has the potential to greatly improve the care for residents in our memory care community while also providing greater peace of mind to their family members and reducing strain on their caretakers. We look forward to the success of this project and expanding our partnership with etectRx beyond this pilot.”
