Nurse wins innovation award with TeleTracking patient safety technology
Real-time locating software (RTLS) from TeleTracking has helped a Wolverhampton nurse win NHS Innovator of the Year for the West Midlands region award in the NHS Leadership Recognition Awards. Clare Nash of the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. Nash, an intensive and critical care nurse, won for her work enhancing patient safety through the SafeHands programme, for which she is programme manager. SafeHands uses RTLS to pinpoint locations of tagged equipment, badged patients and staff using infra-red and radio-frequency technology. Information is presented to users in real-time on large touch screens and computers. The system helps enhance infection prevention and control by automatically monitoring hand-washing compliance. The trust is now extending its use of TeleTracking's solutions to help with patient flow and capacity management as well as infection prevention. In the case of an infection outbreak, TeleTracking's RTLS system can track the role of every badged staff member who comes in contact with an infected patient, enabling rapid isolation and screening. As a regional winner in the NHS Leadership Recognition Awards, Nash will now go forward to the National Awards to be held in February 2015.
Pictured: New Cross Hospital, The Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust by JThomas/Geograph.org.uk
TeleTracking: www.teletracking.com
Advanced signs up Kronos for NHS staff management, scheduling, and reporting
Software firm Advanced Business Solutions has signed an agreement with workforce management solutions provider Kronos to provide the Kronos OptiLink solution for staff management, scheduling and reporting to NHS trusts. Advanced is the first company to resell Kronos OptiLink in the UK. The solution will enable NHS Trusts to manage workload, schedules, and productivity using actual patient demand rather than static rosters created in advance. Using real-time data on admissions, discharges, and transfers, the Kronos OptiLink solution delivers a picture of patient population and staffing from the ward level through the entire system, enabling hospitals to staff effectively based on the intensity of patient care needed. Using real-time data on admissions, discharges, and transfers, Kronos OptiLink gives a clear picture of patient population and staffing from the unit level through the entire system to improve staffing and budget management. The technology can help trusts control costs associated with recruitment and covering absences with short-term agency staff in addition to avoiding costly medical claims.
Advanced Business Solutions: www.advancedcomputersoftware.com/abs/
Southern Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group crowdsources innovation
NHS Southern Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has adopted Crowdicity's cloud-based crowdsourcing software to engage its community of patients, GPs, nurses, consultants, carers, local government authorities, stakeholders and partners. The project has been launched to drive innovation and maintain the CCG's focus on safeguarding patient care. Dr Sheila Newport, CCG chair and chair of Derbyshire Innovation Partnership, said: "We want to encourage people to make their own changes, while also taking on-board suggestions that can work throughout the entire organisation. From training staff on the prevention of pressure ulcers to care for acute kidney injuries - we have countless ideas for this platform and expect it to have a great impact on the effectiveness and innovation of the organisation as a whole." Crowdicity aims to help organisations harness the knowledge, experience and creativity of their employees, customers and stakeholders to discover new ideas, insights and opportunities.
Crowdicity: http://crowdicity.com
