Colleagues use of innovative CareScan tool recognised at awards ceremony
A team that has worked innovatively to reduce waste and run a more efficient service for patients receiving renal care at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton has been recognised in a prestigious awards ceremony.
UHDB is the first NHS hospital trust in the country to trial Carescan, a scanning tool that is used on a smart device to control stock management, capture costs and collect data on procedures, within its renal department.
The improvement work has looked to ensure that all equipment, including the expiry date and product code of equipment, are checked and recorded in a safe, effective and efficient manner - and its impact has resulted in the work being 'highly commended' at the Health Tech News NOW awards, in the 'Best use of data' category.
Dr Nitin Kolhe, Consultant Nephrologist, explains: "Dialysis is fast moving and we can have 40 or 50 dialysis treatments going on at the same time, which then change every four hours, so the process was quite cumbersome. There was an opportunity to record this information more efficiently, while also considering the cost of these items, to ensure that we are being both clinically and financially effective."
Following a pilot, the team found that it took colleagues an average of eight minutes per patient to document the information - which equates to 500,000 minutes a year, just completing paperwork. This shows how an improved process can make things more efficient for team members and ensure more time is given back to providing care for our patients.
Dr Kolhe said: "We were already using similar devices in our theatres to track stock, but as part of this implementation, we are capturing both movable and non-movable items with the scanner as common practice, to ensure we have accurate data."
There are many benefits to this software and Kirsty Swinscoe-Scott, Care Management, Customer Support and Development Officer at UHDB, said it is also improving patient safety and promoting best practice.
Kirsty said: "The new process offers us enhanced traceability which allows us to track certain equipment if there are any safety concerns. It has also given us an opportunity to educate some of the staff on the importance of good needling practice, which improves the patient experience but is also cost effective."
After a successful trial at Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, the CareScan software is now being utilised in the renal department at Royal Derby Hospital, with ambitions to roll it out in other departments in the future.
You can find out more about the work with CareScan here >