St John's Hospital in Limerick, Ireland, is using
awireless network to allow doctors to access patients'
recordsat the bedside.
It means medical staff can spend more time treating patients at
the bedside instead of updating records.
The hospital staff wanted to extend the network and make it more
accessible, as a lack of computer workstations meant putting data
into the system was difficult and time-consuming.
Installing a larger cabled network was not an option, because
the hospital is in a listed building. So the IT team installed a
wireless network, which allows doctors and nurses to view records
on
thin client PCs at the bedside.
Staff can also use
mobile picture archiving and communication systems, which allow
X-rays and ultrasounds to be read anywhere in the hospital.
Darren O'Brien, information services manager at St John's, said
the hospital had been at a "crossroads". Doctors and nurses were
spending more and more time trying to get to terminals to access
patient records, but there was no room to install more.
The wireless network was provided by Motorola and Dimension
Networks, and is being implemented in two phases.
Phase one connected all patient treatment areas in the hospital,
including the day unit, in-patient ward, accident and emergency and
operating theatres. Phase two, to be implemented next year, will
link all other administrative buildings to the network. The network
can also be expanded as needed with the IT team able to add more
access points.
Staff now have quicker and more convenient access to
information, meaning they can spend more time at patients'
bedsides.
O'Brien said, "Clinicians are spending less time trying to input
information and updating patient records, meaning they have more
time for one-on-one consultation with the patients. No longer are
we anchored to purpose-built areas of the hospital."