Fall Detection, Audits: How AI Helps Trilogy, Signature Improve Nursing Home Operations

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Trilogy Health Services and Signature HealthCARE leaders described AI and monitoring tools for early health alerts, fall prevention and clinical documentation at an industry conference. They reported fewer hospitalizations and falls in specific programs, but the figures come from company leaders, and details on measurement and independent verification were not provided.

Trilogy Health Services and Signature HealthCARE are using AI-enabled monitoring and analytics in nursing home operations, including to flag potential health changes, alert staff to movement that could precede a fall and organize records for audits. At the Skilled Nursing News ReThink conference in Philadelphia this week, nursing executives at the two operators described reported outcomes and stressed that technology must reduce caregiver work rather than add tasks.

Trilogy senior vice president and chief nursing officer Rhonda Dempsey said the company uses predictive analytics and a chest-worn, 24-hour monitoring device for residents considered at high risk of rehospitalization. She said a sustained temperature increase of two degrees above a resident’s baseline for about an hour prompts an alert to a nurse, who assesses the resident and contacts a practitioner. Trilogy is tracking the program weekly and has about 300 residents using the device, Dempsey said.

Dempsey attributed a 60% reduction in hospitalizations to the monitoring device. The source report did not provide the period of comparison, underlying hospitalization counts or an independent evaluation. Dempsey said the goal is to identify potential deterioration before a resident’s condition becomes severe enough to require hospital care.

At Signature, chief nursing officer Barbara Revelette described a fall-prevention system initially introduced in four facilities and later expanded to 20 buildings. The system uses movement detection and machine learning to notify staff; Signature also uses remote sitters who can contact residents or call facility staff when an alert indicates a resident may be trying to get out of bed. Revelette said clinical teams recorded an 80% decrease in falls in buildings using the technology. She did not specify the measurement period or comparison method. Signature operates 69 locations across five states; Trilogy operates more than 140 senior living communities, according to the report.

AI Alerts and Caregiver Workloads

The examples show how nursing home operators are applying AI to time-sensitive care tasks, not just back-office administration. Alerts about changes in a resident’s condition or attempts to get out of bed may help staff respond sooner, while automated documentation and organized dashboards can make records easier to review. The potential value depends on whether alerts are actionable and whether caregivers can use the tools without extra steps.

The operators’ reported results are relevant to facilities weighing new technology, but they do not establish that the systems will produce the same outcomes elsewhere. The 60% hospitalization reduction and 80% fall decrease were presented by company executives; the account does not give enough methodological detail to assess causation or compare performance across facilities.

Two Operators, Different AI Uses

The conference discussion covered clinical monitoring as well as operational pressures. Dempsey said Trilogy builds its AI use around predictive analytics and clinical workflows. Revelette described Signature’s ambient monitoring program, which she called a “virtual sitter program”: remote staff can monitor several residents and communicate with residents or on-site staff when a system flags movement. She said one sitter can monitor between eight and 10 residents virtually.

Signature also uses technology to identify missing information in clinical documentation and bring data into dashboards, Revelette said. She and Dempsey said documentation specialists remain necessary to respond to the varied information requests of auditors. Dempsey said facilities may document beyond regulatory requirements to prepare for different audits. The report did not identify specific audit findings or regulatory changes tied to the tools.

“When their temperature goes up two degrees above their baseline and sustains for about an hour, the nurse gets the alert, goes down and assesses the resident, and calls the practitioner.”

— Rhonda Dempsey, Trilogy Health Services senior vice president and chief nursing officer

How the Reported Results Were Measured

The conference account does not state the time periods, comparison groups or raw counts behind the hospitalization and fall reductions. It also does not provide independent research validating those figures or explain how much outcomes varied among participating facilities. The results should be understood as figures reported by the operators, not as independently established effects.

Further details are also absent on the systems’ costs, alert accuracy, false alarms, resident consent and how resident information is protected. Dempsey warned that staff adopting unapproved tools could create HIPAA-related risks, but the report did not describe a specific breach or violation. It remains unclear how the operators assess privacy and performance as programs expand.

Expansion and Program Evaluation

Revelette said Signature is continuing to add features to its virtual sitter program and has more capabilities under development. The company has expanded fall-prevention technology from four facilities to 20, but she did not give a timetable or a target for further rollout. Trilogy’s device program is being tracked weekly, Dempsey said, though the report did not specify when the company might publish additional results.

Further reporting or company disclosures could clarify how the reported outcomes were calculated, whether they persisted over time and how systems affect staffing and resident experience. Both executives emphasized that facilities need to work with technology partners and select tools that fit caregivers’ duties. Those implementation details will shape whether the programs can be adopted beyond the locations currently using them.

Key Questions

What AI tools are Trilogy and Signature using?

Trilogy uses a wearable monitoring device and predictive analytics to flag potential health changes in some residents. Signature uses movement-detection technology, ambient monitoring and remote sitters to alert staff, alongside AI-supported documentation tools.

What results did the companies report?

Trilogy’s Rhonda Dempsey attributed a 60% reduction in hospitalizations to its monitoring device. Signature’s Barbara Revelette said participating buildings saw an 80% decrease in falls. The report did not provide the comparison periods or independent verification for either figure.

How many facilities are using Signature’s fall-prevention system?

Revelette said Signature expanded the system from an initial four facilities to 20 buildings. She did not provide a schedule for further expansion.

Are Signature’s virtual sitters fully automated?

No. Revelette described a system combining AI and ambient monitoring with live remote sitters. She said a sitter can contact a resident or call on-site staff after an alert.

What is still unknown about the reported outcomes?

The source report did not specify the measurement windows, baseline figures or study methods behind the reductions in hospitalizations and falls. It also did not include independent evaluations or detailed information on costs and alert accuracy.

Source: rss