SYRACUSE — Two forensic psychiatrists at the State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University are developing new technology to prevent suicide among adults in custodial care. The technology could be ready for use in jail settings as soon as 2014, says Dr. Andrew Kaufman, who is working on the effort full time. Kaufman […]
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SYRACUSE — Two forensic psychiatrists at the State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University are developing new technology to prevent suicide among adults in custodial care.
The technology could be ready for use in jail settings as soon as 2014, says Dr. Andrew Kaufman, who is working on the effort full time. Kaufman and Dr. James Knoll plan to commercialize the system through a startup firm, Zinnia Safety Systems, LLC.
Zinnia will take up residence in the CNY Biotech Accelerator in January and will be one of the first companies in the new facility.
The startup’s system monitors a pulse in the neck that would cease during a suicide attempt by hanging, Kaufman explains. Hanging is the most common method people use to commit suicide in jails, he adds.
The system would recognize the lack of a pulse in 10 to 12 seconds and a transmitter would then alert staff members. The technology also measures blood oxygen saturation, which would drop in someone placed a plastic bag over his or her head or otherwise tried to block airflow to the lungs, Kaufman says.
There’s nothing, Kaufman notes, to prevent someone from removing the pulse monitor, but staff members would know almost instantly if that happened. And that, he adds, would give medical providers valuable information about an individual’s mindset.
“It could indicate the need for a higher level of human observation,” Kaufman says.
Jails at the county and municipality level would be a first market for the technology, Kaufman says. Other facilities such as psychiatric units in hospitals, state prisons, and substance-abuse treatment centers are also on Zinnia’s radar.
The company is exploring monitoring individuals outside custodial settings as well. Kaufman says he’s had early talks about the system with the Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention at the Veterans Health Administration Medical Center in Canandaigua.
Kaufman says he’ll eventually serve as Zinnia’s chief medical officer and is in the process of recruiting a CEO, other staff members, and a business advisory board. Knoll will serve as director of the firm’s scientific advisory board.
The company has received some early seed funding from Upstate Medical and also a $50,000 grant from the SUNY Research Foundation Technology Accelerator Fund. The money will go toward completion of a prototype and a trial of the technology at Upstate Medical, Kaufman says.
Kaufman adds he has had early talks with some angel investors and expects to raise additional financing in the next six months.
Currently, suicide prevention in custodial settings like jails relies mainly on human observation, Knoll says. Designers have attempted to make environments in those settings safer by, for example, eliminating places where individuals can hang themselves.
But staff members are still essentially the front line of defense by checking on patients or inmates at regular intervals — usually about 15 minutes, Kaufman says. The problem is that brain damage can occur in three to four minutes during a hanging attempt with death in about four or five minutes.
Suicides have even occurred in extremely high-risk individuals where facilities use one-on-one observation, Knoll notes. Observers might have a momentary lapse of concentration or need a break.
And they also might want to give the individual they’re observing some privacy, he adds. The monitoring technology could address those issues.
“This would allow the return of some personal privacy and dignity,” Knoll says.
The clinical trial planned for Upstate Medical will allow Knoll and Kaufman to begin answering some questions over how the system will affect individuals wearing it. Researchers will want to know if the system makes them feel more secure or if it indicates to them that their medical providers are taking their symptoms seriously.
The use of technology like this in psychiatry is long overdue, Knoll adds.
“We truly believe this is a worthy, valuable idea,” he says. “I think the basic notion of suicide prevention in custodial settings is a very important and noble effort.”
Contact Tampone at ktampone@cnybj.com
