By Nick Heath, 9 July 2009 15:31
Walsall Manor Hospital is helping its doctors and nursing staff save time, thanks to a new system that tracks patients and beds.
The hospital has installed a Horizon Enterprise Visibility system, which pulls information from different hospital systems to show medical staff when beds are free, who is waiting to be discharged and when imaging and lab results and prescriptions are ready, and has already helped the hospital speed up the bed allocation process for planned admissions by up to three hours.
The system displays information on large LCD screens on the ward, shown here, which staff control through a touchscreen interface.
Photo credit: Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust
Comments
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1. anonymous
Nice touchscreen system....
...however, as with touch-screen reception check in systems in doctors and becoming more apparent in hospitals, the last thing you want is more things that cleaners do not clean/clean properly that with be breeding grounds for MRSA/CDiff etc due to grubby doctors/nurses who do not clean their hands effectively/regularly.
I'm sure most cleaning contractors will refuse to clean it/be banned from cleaning it, as it is an IT/computer system.
2. anonymous
Surely touch screens are a no no in hospitals because of the filthy state most are in and its an easy way to further spread the viruses.
3. anonymous
Surely they are!!! Because it is proven by Infection Controls and Hygiene departments of over 100 Hospitals implementations that touchscreens do not create or spread any further viruses to patients or care staff.
Touchscreens are no different that the devices already in a hospital and any other equipment that is kept in the hospital. It is like saying, don't buy an extra TV set for the another bedroom in the house because it will spread more germs. Really some people has to get with the new technologies available that help patients and care staff performed their more efficiently and productively.
4. drew stephenson
I'd reckon a touch screen has to be a whole load easier to keep clean than a keyboard / mouse combination...