As doctors, nurses and staff members met to decide how best to care for patients in their new facility, technology issues continually came to the forefront. With advances in technology, patients receive higher quality, more convenient care, at a quicker pace.
The following are just a few of the unique technological advances the Regional Medical Center employs:
No longer do patients have to walk a long corridor to fill out miles of paperwork. Instead, patients report immediately to the department that will give them care. A knowledgeable staff member will then use a portable computer or handheld device to enter the necessary information right into the computer. The new system ensures patients are seen quicker and cuts down on transcription errors.
Gone are the days of constant, disruptive overhead pages. Those pages are the exception rather than the rule with the new wireless phones carried by both doctors and nurses in the Regional Medical Center. The system makes communication simpler and faster for everyone.
- Patients to nurses: The patient's call button sends a call immediately to the nurse responsible for treating that patient.
- Nurses to doctors: Nurses can easily track down doctors for further instructions.
- Doctors to nurses: Doctors can quickly find the nurse treating their patient for ease in getting updates and giving instructions.
- Roaming and Stationary Computers
Not only does each department have a supply of portable computers that can travel to each patient's bedside, but it also has computers in alcoves between every few patient rooms. That means patient information and updates are just a few steps away from every patient room.
A pneumatic tube system, similar to the tubes systems used at drive-up bank windows, is installed throughout the hospital. Nurses can easily order or send medications, sterile instruments, or blood samples to anywhere in the hospital.
- Automated medication dispensing machines
Similar to an ATM, the automated dispensing machines deliver medicines quickly. Once a physician enters a prescription into the computer system, nurses can type in a password and receive the medication and dose they need. The system speeds medication delivery and prevents errors.
In most hospitals, once an X-ray or CT scan is performed, the physicians must wait for the image to be developed. At SJH Regional Medical Center, the images are immediately delivered to secure computers throughout the hospital. Filmless imaging speeds up the diagnosis of any condition, plus it makes the scan available to multiple treating physicians at once.
- Strict yet convenient security features
To provide added security to medical records and information, doctors and nurses must sign in using a fingerprint recognition device. Not only does this method limit access to authorized users only, but it also makes logging on simple. With a touch of a finger, doctors can immediately see the records they saw at the last computer they visited.