Aberdeen Royal Infirmary adopts ExtraMed BED management system

After a successful pilot study, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary has chosen ExtraMed BEDS for use across the whole hospital.

Published: 07/03

GRANGEMOUTH, UK - (HealthTech Wire) - Following a short pilot study of the ExtraMed BEDS Bed Management system, at eight wards in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, NHS Grampian will adopt the system of real-time bed management for use across the whole hospital, the largest in the North East and the first in Scotland to use it.

ExtraMed’s BEDS software replaces ARI’s traditional paper-based system of ward managers monitoring and reporting on the bed status in their ward twice daily, with nurses using white boards to note which patients were in which beds. Figures were collated manually by Operational Support at ARI and these were used to manage the flow of patients through the hospital.

“The software not only shows us, minute by minute, which patient is where, but also the estimated date for the patient leaving hospital, which makes bed capacity management and discharge planning much more effective,” says Adam Coldwells, Assistant General Manager at ARI. “Like all hospitals, at certain times we have pressure on bed capacity and we want to make sure we’re making absolutely the best use of our resources and this system gives us up to the minute information at our fingertips.  It is being used by a wide range of staff –nurses locate patients and can see estimated discharge dates, doctors can check the timing and sequence of tests, and portering staff check it when they need to collect a patient from a ward.

“Today (June 30) we have extended the system to seven more wards and will roll the system out across the remaining 29 wards in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, over the rest of 2008, which covers some 900 beds.“

The pilot was conducted during late 2007 and early 2008 in the Acute Medical and Receiving areas of the hospital, at the sharp end of patient entry into the hospital. Feedback was positive, and Extramed worked with staff to tailor the system to their needs, such as creating a screen image as a diagram of each individual ward’s bed configuration, and colour coding information on screen for immediate recognition. Extramed also devised and tailored checklists and their automatic appearance, ensuring key aspects of a patient’s details are updated in an efficient and uniform way, when the patient is ready to leave the ward or hospital.

Ward Sister Elizabeth Millar covers the cardiology wards at ARI and says the new system is a timesaver: “All of us found it very easy – in half an hour you understand the basics and can use it – it formalised our white board system, which had been our pride and joy. Staff have really got behind it, including the ‘computer-phobic’! It is a simple, colour-coded system, you hover the mouse for details, rather than click your way through menus, and colours show how soon a patient is ready to be discharged – from red to yellow to green (green means it’s in 24 hours).

“The constant to and fro to the phone about bed management took up a lot of the nurse in charge’s administrative time. Now all staff, including our auxiliary nurses, can keep the system up to date and refer to the latest information without having to constantly ask the nurse in charge. “

Irene Jessiman, Operational Support Manager adds: “We can see across all the wards linked to BEDS where each patient is, who they are, and where there is free bed space.

“The software goes beyond this, and can aid patient referrals to support services and allied professionals, which helps with the flow of patients. It has the capacity to update changes in a patient’s medication, ensuring medical teams in the community have precise details on any changes when their patient returns from hospital. It contributes to the best care of patients and best use of staff time.”

David Brogan, NHS Business Development Director at ExtraMed, says: “We are very pleased with the success of our pilot at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. One of the most important aspects of the pilot was to demonstrate that nurses and doctors would engage quickly with the ExtraMed system and see real benefits that allow more time to concentrate on patient care. Having achieved this, we are looking forward to extending the use of the system across the hospital and we welcome NHS Grampian to our growing community of valued customers.”