The second Healthcare Innovation EXPO will be showcasing the latest mobile health and social care solutions for community-based healthcare teams.

Designed to reduce administration, improve remote access to vital data and allow carers to focus on caring, these solutions, including digital pens, telehealthcare and text-based CRM, are already delivering impressive cost-savings in pilot schemes across the country.

Visitors to the EXPO will have the opportunity to see this technology in action and to talk to experts about how it could be put to innovative use in their part of the NHS.

Telefonica O2 UK, an exhibitor at the EXPO, offers a suite of mobile worker solutions already in use by community midwives and nurses, which permit the digital transmission of data to a central location, allow digital job-scheduling and shared real-time access to patient data. These solutions make more efficient use of the healthcare professional’s time, allowing for more patient contact and requiring less travel time back to a central base. They also promote the improved flow of information between different healthcare teams supporting more timely decision-making and healthcare interventions. The text-based CRM facilities are being used in primary healthcare supporting weight loss campaigns, smoking cessation and Chlamydia screening campaigns for example.

Community-based midwives working for the Portsmouth NHS Trust are already seeing the benefits of innovative technology in their work environment with the use of digi-pens, introduced in 2009. The pens collect patient data which is then downloaded in pdf format and is available for sharing immediately, freeing up the midwives time spent on administration and allowing them to dedicate more of their time to supporting mothers-to-be. Travel time is reduced as there is less need to return to base and staff security is increased with the digi-pens allowing the user to transmit a ‘message’ indicating a need for urgent assistance.

The EXPO, which is the largest health and social care event in Europe, provides an unparalleled opportunity for businesses to interact directly with key health and social care professionals including decision makers, as well as those who directly provide patient and community-based care. It is also a vital forum for social care professionals to link up with healthcare experts and explore opportunities for innovative changes in the approach to long-term care and the management of patients with chronic conditions.

The innovative services provided by organisations like Telefónica O2 are already helping the NHS better manage its resources and improve productivity as well as delivering better control of overall patient healthcare with a decrease in unplanned and emergency interventions in areas where the new technology has been deployed.

Topics