What You Should Know:
– Sutter Health, an integrated not-for-profit healthcare system based in Northern California, and Flosonics Medical today announced an expansion of the deployment of FloPatch, the first wireless wearable Doppler ultrasound device, across multiple hospital sites to support more precise and timely intravenous (IV) fluid management.
– This multisite deployment includes Sutter’s Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, Summit Campus in Oakland and Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital in Sonoma County.
Sutter Health Scales FloPatch to Improve Fluid Management and Critical Care Outcomes
Sutter Health, a mission-driven not-for-profit system serving over 3.5 million patients across California, is advancing its commitment to connected, equitable care by scaling the deployment of FloPatch, an FDA-cleared, wearable device for real-time hemodynamic monitoring. With more than 60,500 employees and 14,000+ clinicians, Sutter delivers integrated services across hospitals, ambulatory centers, telehealth, home health, and hospice—with a strategic focus on leveraging innovation to improve care quality and access.
Addressing the Risks of IV Fluid Overload with Precision
IV fluid overload remains a frequent and costly complication in emergency and intensive care settings, particularly among patients with sepsis or septic shock. Studies show that nearly one-third of such patients are fluid unresponsive¹. Administering unnecessary fluids without timely assessment increases the risk of pulmonary edema, extended hospital stays by an average of three days, and over $15,000 in added cost per patient².
FloPatch helps mitigate this risk by providing:
- Non-invasive, wearable hemodynamic monitoring to assess cardiac response to fluids in real time
- Personalized, actionable fluid therapy that can reduce mechanical ventilation and renal replacement needs³ ⁴
- Improved ICU efficiency and outcomes, with shorter lengths of stay and reduced mortality⁵
By enabling clinicians to assess fluid responsiveness at the bedside without relying on specialized ICU resources, FloPatch simplifies and accelerates critical decision-making. “Our previous method of assessing fluid responsiveness was cumbersome and time-consuming,” said Dr. Nader Emami, ICU Medical Director at Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital. “FloPatch empowers any member of the care team to perform this essential assessment faster and easier.”
Expanding Innovation Across Sutter Campuses
Over the past year, six Sutter hospital campuses—including Eden Medical Center and three CPMC campuses in San Francisco—have implemented FloPatch across Emergency, ICU, Med-Surg, and Telemetry units. This expansion reflects Sutter Health’s broader innovation agenda, focused on deploying proven, scalable technologies to improve clinical efficiency and patient outcomes. As the organization continues to transform care delivery, the rollout of FloPatch serves as a model for integrating intelligent, team-friendly tools across diverse clinical environments.
