Technology is helping improve patient communication and care at a Norfolk hospital.
People can now look and change appointment information via the NHS App, and staff can do some patient checks and communicate with each other on a new digital system, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn.
NHS App
The hospital is going live on the NHS App alongside the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.
This means those who have the app downloaded on their phone or tablet can check their appointments, appointment letters, and clinical information, and have a single point of contact for any question for those appointments.
Kerry Broome, Deputy Chief Operating Officer at The QEH, said: “This is great news for patients as it will allow them to take control of their health appointments and communications in one single place. It will also help them to feel supported while waiting for their hospital appointment or treatment.
“Providing the best of care to our patients is a key priority for us and the NHS APP will allow patients to manage their healthcare appointments and control who they share information with at all times.”
The NHS App is available on iOS and Android.
POMS system
Meanwhile staff can now use POMS or the Patient Observation Management System. This means staff can now record patients vital signs on it, and they can also communicate with each other through its WhatsApp-style system rather than using bleeps.
Leah Edgley, ward manager on West Newton Ward which was the first to go live with the new technology, said: “It has made great improvements in patient care, leading to more accurate patient investigations, timely treatment, and helps us to manage patient care in the best way possible.
“We can monitor patients’ vital signs in real-time and therefore quickly identify patients that need our help, enabling us to be alerted more quickly and improve the care of that patient.”
In the last 12 months more than 200,000 patient e-Observations have been taken and just under 1,500 members of Team QEH are using the ‘Whats-app style’ communication tool.
