A recliner to avoid pressure injuries

About this idea

The Sit Sense recliner is a “smart” recliner that knows your needs before you do. Each year, 2.5 million people who sit too long in one position experience pressure injuries in the US, which can be painful and deadly, with complications leading to 60,000 deaths. Nurses reposition patients to prevent these injuries, but patient handling leads to back injuries and pain in 75% of nurses. Our patented recliner moves naturally around a person’s joints unlike any other recliner. With its distinct sections that move independently of one another, our innovative repositioning protocol redistributes pressure automatically, where each subsequent position offloads body regions that were loaded in the previous one. Sensors embedded throughout the chair give pressure and position feedback to ensure pressure redistribution occurs. Nurses simply transfer their patient to the Sit Sense recliner, select a program, and monitor progress. The unique segmented design of the recliner then supports the patient’s anatomy and automatically reduces the factors most responsible for pressure injuries.

Impact

Automatic repositioning reduces pressure injury risk to the patient and physical stress on nurses that leads to work-related injuries, thereby reducing the cost of treating both types of injuries while improving healthcare. This will increase both patient and nurse well-being, leading to better outcomes for patients, a healthier workforce, and better safety score for hospitals. As a Michigan-based company focused on serving healthcare facilities in the area, Sit Sense will change the standard of care for pressure injuries and put Michigan hospitals on the cutting edge of patient care.

What I'll do with $5,000

The $5,000 will be used to achieve 2 goals – to fund a real-world pilot of the Sit Sense recliner in local facilities and to pay for a legal review of the licensing agreement with Michigan State University to acquire the rights to the recliner technology. Costs included in the real-world pilot are an Institutional Review Board review of the pilot protocol and participant compensation. This pilot will allow the team to obtain feedback on the near-final prototype before the finishing touches are applied to the recliner to prepare it for purchase. The rights to the technology have already been allocated to the team with an option agreement that is to be signed, and a legal review of the upcoming license agreement will ensure that Sit Sense, Inc. is able to grow.

Quick Bio

Justin Scott is a Ph.D. biomechanist transforming research on rehabilitation in healthcare settings into products that enhance activities and quality of life for individuals of all mobility levels.

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