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1. What is the Smart Bed system and how does it work?
2. Who is the Smart Bed designed for?
3. Who were involved in developing the Smart Bed?
4. How long was the trial run at Alexandra Hospital? What is the feedback from staff?
   Please give a comparison of falls before and after the Smart Bed systems were installed
   at Alexandra Hospital during the trial run.
5. What is the price of each Smart Bed?
6. Briefly describe the commercialisation process.
7. How many Smart Bed systems have been installed at Alexandra Hospital?
8. Has a patent been filed for the Smart Bed system? If so, has it been granted?
9. Why is the Smart Bed system so important?
10. Are there any similar systems in the market, locally and overseas?
11. Has Alexandra Hospital tried other types of systems to prevent its patients from falling?
    If so, please elaborate on how they compare with Ngee Ann’s Smart Bed system.
12. Is Alexandra Hospital the first hospital in Singapore to install the Smart Bed system?

1. What is the Smart Bed system and how does it work?
   The Smart Bed sensor system is essentially composed of a series of compression springs placed under the mattress. When the patient is lying on the bed, the springs are depressed, thus completing the circuit below the mattress.However, as the patient slides towards the end of the bed to get up, the springs around the upper part of the bed are released. When this happens, the circuit is open and an alert system is automatically triggered:

   i) A buzzer at the nurses’ station
   ii) A light along the corridor
   iii) An SMS sent to the duty nurse’s mobile phone
   
   The caregiver can then attend to the patient immediately to prevent a fall.
   

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2. Who is the Smart Bed designed for?
   The Smart Bed is designed for weak elderly patients and those who require complete bed rest.
   
   
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3. Who were involved in developing the Smart Bed?
   The Smart Bed is the result of a collaboration between Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s (NP) Electrical Engineering Division, Alexandra Hospital and Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd.
   
   Following an in-depth discussion with Alexandra Hospital, NP developed a prototype which was further improved, thanks to feedback and inputs from the hospital’s nurses, doctors and operations staff.
   
   After about four-and-a-half months, two Smart Bed systems were installed in Alexandra Hospital in October 2005 for a trial run.
   
   As part of the commercialisation process, Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd was specially set up to produce and market the Smart Bed. Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd also helped to further refine and improve the system to support a larger number of beds in a ward.
   
   
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4. How long was the trial run at Alexandra Hospital? What is the feedback from staff? Please give a comparison of falls before and after the Smart Bed systems were installed at Alexandra Hospital during the trial run.
   The trial run at Alexandra Hospital stretched from October 2005 till February 2006. 

   Feedback from the nurses involved has been very positive. They found the SMS alert especially useful at night, when the manpower is reduced. Following the trial run, Alexandra Hospital decided to install the Smart Bed system on all the beds in one of its geriatric wards to test the system more extensively.

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5. What is the price of each Smart Bed?
   The price for each Smart Bed system is between S$800 and S$1,500, depending on how extensive the system is customised and the addons installed.
   
   
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6. Briefly describe the commercialisation process.
   The Smart Bed systems installed by Alexandra Hospital’s geriatric ward were supplied by Plenitum Care
   (S) Pte Ltd, a local company set up specially to produce and market the Smart Bed.

   Incorporated in April 2006 with a paid-up capital of $150,000, Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd is a joint venture between NP Enterprise (S) Pte Ltd and three local companies – SPE Technology (S) Pte Ltd, SysEng (S) Pte Ltd and Mdesign Solutions Pte Ltd.

   The Managing Director cum Sales & Marketing Director of Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd is Frank Poh, who graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic in 1991 with a Diploma in Electronic Engineering.

   Notes on NP Enterprise (S) Pte Ltd:

   NP Enterprise (S) Pte Ltd was previously known as NITEC Holding Pte Ltd, which was established in June 1996 to assist Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s staff to commercialise their inventions and products. NITEC Holding Pte Ltd was renamed as NP Enterprise (S) Pte Ltd in July 2004 to reflect Ngee Ann’s enterprising nature.

   With Plenitum Care (S) Pte Ltd, NP Enterprise (S) Pte Ltd has successfully spun off six companies. The others are ASKnLearn, CRESITA, Progeniq, OEC International (China) Pte Ltd, and OEC Investment Pte Ltd.
   

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7. How many Smart Bed systems have been installed at Alexandra Hospital?
   Thirty-six beds in one of the two geriatric wards at Alexandra Hospital have been fitted with the Smart Bed system.
   
   
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8. Has a patent been filed for the Smart Bed system? If so, has it been granted?
   Yes, a patent for the Smart Bed system has been filed.
   
   
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9. Why is the Smart Bed system so important?
   The Smart Bed system addresses the worldwide problem of falling patients in hospitals. Besides the possibility of sustaining serious injury, falls may also result in an extended stay in the hospitals, thus increasing the financial obligations of the patients and their families.

   In 2005 alone, there was a total of 115 falls in Alexandra Hospital. Of these, 40 percent were aged 65 years and above. Most of the falls (79 precent) happened at the bedside.
   

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10. Are there any similar systems in the market, locally and overseas?
    No.
    
    
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11. Has Alexandra Hospital tried other types of systems to prevent its patients from falling? If so, please elaborate on how they compare with Ngee Ann’s Smart Bed system.
    To date, Alexandra Hospital rely on the nurse's dedication and manual detection to prevent patients fall. This method is effective, but not as effective as the Smart Bed, which truely prevented any falls.
    
    
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12. Is Alexandra Hospital the first hospital in Singapore to install the Smart Bed system?
    Yes, Alexandra Hospital is the first hospital in Singapore to install the Smart Bed system.

    Since the Smart Bed was featured in Alexandra Hospital’s March-April 2006 newsletter, Alexandra Hospital has been getting requests from other hospitals to understand and view the Smart Bed system.

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