Researchers from College Station-based Texas A&M University, University of Houston-Clear Lake and Houston-based Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital are developing a smartwatch to help nurses manage their workload.
The smartwatch, which is in its prototyping phase, will track biometric data to collect information about each nurse's stress and workload levels. The smartwatch will send this data to a display, which informs colleagues about their availability; that is, the smartwatch can identify a nurse's period of high stress and turn their availability off.
The researchers hope this wearable device will streamline workflow for nurses and decrease the time spend manually checking on each nurse throughout the day.