By Steve Ranger, 3 November 2005 13:30
NEWS
The public sector is declaring war on paper as it tries to make services more efficient by cutting the need to re-enter data.
Last month NHS IT director general Richard Granger described the reliance on paper records in the health service as a risk. "Wouldn't it be interesting to have a target on paper consumption because we know paper is dangerous," he said.
As well as being dangerous paper is expensive to create and store - and not very environmentally friendly.
So as organisations look to keep all their records in electronic formats, getting information off paper is an increasingly important issue.
A number of public sector organisations have been experimenting with the use of digital pen and paper technology.
Leeds City Council is rolling out digital paper and pens to 1,300 social care workers in a bid to save £1.2m by 2008, while social workers in Greenwich have been trialing a digital pen and paper system since April.
Greenwich council social services information systems manager Dave Plumb explained: "There's huge savings to be made from being able to use this sort of technology. It will streamline the way we work."
The council has trialed the technology with 10 social workers and is planning a more extensive project later this year.
The digital pen is slightly larger than the average pen - about the size of a marker. When used on specially printed paper - which features a tiny dot pattern - the pen's camera determine where the pen is on the page. The pen can store 40 A4 pages of text.
"Everybody loved the idea of the pen. You have a pen and a form and a mobile phone - and you are sitting down with a piece of paper and not a laptop or PDA. There was a real feel-good factor," Plumb said.
Staff get more assessments done because they don't have to go back and type up the information, which is sent back via a Bluetooth connection to a mobile phone.
The pens are less likely to be stolen than mobile phones or PDAs and even if they are the data on the phone is encrypted.
The second phase of the trial will see the information sent straight back into the client record systems. The Greenwich trial with IT supplier Serco used technology from Ubiquitous Systems, Nokia and Corelogic.
Comments
There are 16 comments. Join the discussion
1. anonymous
"As well as being dangerous paper is expensive to create and store - and not very environmentally friendly."
So why do the digital pens write in ink as well then? How is this possibly reducing paper consumption?
2. Mike
If the "paper" is "wipe clean", then it can be reused.
More details on the technology please?
How is this an advance on a writing tablet?
3. anonymous
Obviously electronic pens can be made out of recycled plastic bags and run on solar power so they have no negative effect on the the environment.
If the NHS get rid of paper then I'll never get my appointment card through the post.
4. anonymous
Current digital pen technology is interesting, but could be seen as a clever "repeat business" model for the people who make the special paper and forms. The claims that it cuts paper use are dubious - and it uses a much more expensive form of paper!
Data re-entry savings might be real and useful. The problem with much form based data capture, particularly if it is of any complexity, is that it still needs to be available in a format that the Mark I Human Eyeball can process. Hence the paper.
5. Jane Red
Arguably, the most difficult part of a mobile data project is the human / cultural bit. Replacing clipboards and forms with tablets and PDAs is where a lot of resistence and cost lies. This solution "mimics" the human behaviour whilst automating the re - keying, back end bit. Field staff still use ink because for them, nothing has changed and that's the key to this approach. The savings are in operational, process efficiencies.
6. James Couch Smythe
"Wouldn't it be interesting to have a target on paper consumption because we know paper is dangerous,"
This is sad but true. A dear friend of mine was killed when he was attacked by a box of laser paper (bonded #22, I believe) at an office supply store. The store, of course, denied any responsibility. It's interesting the the surveillance cameras "just happened" to quit operating shortly before the incident.
7. martyn
I thought it must be April 1st when I read this.
Please revisit in 12 months and write an article on what a great "success" it has been.
8. anonymous
Presumably, the "digital paper" can be mocked up into a form to be filled in and, much like an etch-a-sketch, can reproduce the pen strokes on the page. When a page is completed, the form can be wiped and the data sent back to base.
Or is this too logical?
9. Richard A.
Let me get this straight...
...the aim of this initiative is to save money spent on stationary by getting a special paper printed up for every form that has to be completed and special pens with which to write..? Oh, hang on.
There may be enormous time (and consequent cost) savings by eliminating the need to input field notes - not to mention improved efficiency and the minimising of copying errors.
But does this system eliminate the cost of paper or mitigate its alleged "danger"? Er, no. Not one bit. Don't be daft.
10. Tim Marshall
Digital pens? Why use technology to do something we should be trying to phase out in the corporate area. The pen is slow, needs a lot of processing power to digitally read and still requires a paper form.
Workers may like it because they know it and have been using it all their lives, But they are wasting a lot of time filling them in when a better input method could be used.
What we should be doing is developing methods that allows keying in accurately with options that are predefined for or by the user.
The PDA is not designed to be easy, just to be useable on the move. To make it easy it needs a better input method which is intuitive to use. It is possible.
11. Graham Coles
In much the same way that the computer put an end to paper in the 'paperless office' which clearly doesn't have 24ppm laser printers and more computer books and magazines that would fit in a book store.
If they're so worried about all that dangerous paper out there (presumably several people have sustained life-threatening paper-cuts) then give it to Health&Safety and we can all start wearing kevlar gloves when handling notepads ...
12. Mike
Digital pens do not have to be constrained by size of "paper". This means they could be used for whiteboards, flip charts etc. at a fraction of the cost of the existing technology.
A brainstorming exercise covering a whole wall, could be captured as it is written.
But let's face it, the paper is still going to be kept for the audit trail.
a mix of "inputs" sounds interesting. ie a mixture of speech, handwriting and keypad.
13. Chris Elvidge
Hi-Tech Solutions do it without "special" paper. Must be a cheaper option.
http://hitech-in.com/mobile_e-note_taker.htm
14. anonymous
Reliance on technology may be misplaced! Papyrus records from 3,000BC can still be read - rather better than most 3.5" floppy discs after a year of storage! I have never heard of anyone cry out "Where's the stationer", but I frequently hear a cry of "Where's the B*****y IT chap?"
There IS room for both, but to state that electronic records will ever totally replace hard copy is a little previous.
15. Andy
Carefull reasoning....
I agree with using as tool for minimising re-keying as a lot of NHS etc data forms ends up in computers anyhow.
But... these pens are NOT flawless when they are coupled with OCR - which is what is needed to turn scribe strokes into readable - searchable, data processing info.
Likewise, recycling this expensive dot-print media has its own problems i guess, not to mention what shabby sub-contractor gets hold of MY data paper form data when its pulped. And then who looses my digital copy.. ;)
16. anonymous
There's more information on the technology here http://www.fasgroup.net