Calderdale & huddersfield nhs trust starts roll-out of mobile electronic observations and hospital at night software to improve patient safety and staff communication 24/7

Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Trust has begun deploying Nervecentre electronic observations, Hospital at Night, handover and clinical assessments software using mobiles devices across its two hospitals. Funded through the Nursing Technology Fund first round, nursing staff and doctors will use ipad and ipods to record patient observations and clinical data in order to manage essential clinical information anywhere in the hospitals 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The software was piloted on wards in Calderdale Royal Hospital during February and March to ensure that the system met all the project objectives to use digital technology in order to deliver safer, more effective and more efficient care within their hospitals. The successful completion of the pilot signalled the software roll out to all clinical staff in both Calderdale Royal Hospital and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary during April 2015 with completion expected by the end of the year.

Key intellectual functionality of the Nervecentre solution includes calculating Early Warning Scores which will intuitively alert the appropriate clinical staff. Doctors will receive alerts on their mobile device to be able to review the information and respond rapid and effectively.

The system also includes a handover function used by both doctors and nurses which ensures there is a smooth transition from recording of information for handover, to continuous care throughout the patients stay. In addition, specialist functions such as Hospital-at-Night, will allow escalations out of hours – ensuring patient care remains consistent 24 hours a day.

Heather McClelland, Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Trust said “The deployment of Nervecentre Software means that we can reduce the burden of paperwork for nurses and clinicians, releasing more time to spend with patients. The use of mobile technology also allows doctors and nurses to have all the tools and information at hand to be able to respond rapidly and effectively to deteriorating patients. Plus, the 24/7 ‘real time’ functionality of the system will ensure continuous patient care from the moment they are admitted through to their discharge.”

Vicki Kaluza, Senior Nurse Consultant, Nervecentre Software, explained “The software pilot at Calderdale Royal Hospital meant that we could tailor our system specifically to meet the needs of all the clinical staff in the different and varied wards across the hospital. We identified and implemented several new adaptations to the software functionality to ensure specific patient safety requirements were achieved.