Louisville jail enhances safety with vital monitoring devices
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Louisville Metro Department of Corrections has gotten more than 150 vital monitoring devices. The touchless technology oversees someone’s heart and respiratory rates.
What You Need To Know
The Louisville Metro Department of Corrections has received new technology
More than 150 vital monitoring devices were placed in single cells; the touchless devices oversee someone's heart and respiratory rates
The department has the most vital monitoring devices in the country
LMDC said it cost more than $900,000 for the 153 devices
The department installed 153 devices in single cells. LMDC Chief Jerry Collins said this project has been a year in the making and is a game-changer for single cells, as those are often the most challenging to observe. It has been used in places such as nursing homes, he said.
“If someone's asleep, they have a heart attack," Collins said. "[If] someone attempts suicide, this allows us to immediately see their vitals go down or up, and our medical staff and our security staff are alerted immediately."
Collins said it's an easy system to use, with audible and visual signs that refresh every three seconds. Colors such as orange indicate someone left their cell while red means their vitals went too high or dropped too low. He said this adds an extra layer of safety.
“We have a lot of health care challenges of folks coming in off the streets that are in not the greatest of shape, so just like any of us can have a health crisis at any moment, this just allows an immediate response,” Collins said.
Twenty-three jails in Kentucky and more than 100 in the U.S. have this technology.
“We currently have the most of these devices of any jail in the country, so we're really was excited about this project that [had] been going on for almost a year to get set up," Collins said. "We're really glad to see it and really make the jail a safer place utilizing technology. This will allow our response times to be, we hope, much quicker."
LMDC plans to add 50 more vital monitoring devices next year. The department added each device costs between $4,000 and $5,000; the total price tag for LMDC's 153 devices is $922,000.
https://spectrumnews1.com/ky/louisville/news/2025/04/22/lmdc-new-technology