Nov 5, 2011

Singapore - Khoo Teck Puat Hospital leverages IT to deliver better patient care


SINGAPORE: Khoo Teck Puat Hospital has clinched a top regional IT award for IT-enabled faster, safer and hassle-free patient care.

The award is called the FutureGov - Healthcare Organisation of the Year.

The hospital had been working closely with the Integrated Health Information Systems (IHiS) to design and implement its IT infrastructure and applications even before its opening last year.

Leveraging IT to better deliver quality treatment to patients is a key focus for Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, a 550-bed acute-care hospital.

At the hub of its IT infrastructure is the integrated Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system which combines all patient data on a common platform and is instantly accessible online by staff.

Dr Goh E Shaun, Associate Consultant, A&E Care Centre, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, said: "We are able to put all of this in one record; we are able to send patients for lab tests, send patients for radiological examinations. We are able to view results from each of this directly on the system and on one single platform, rather than to hunt around for paper forms which can always be erroneously misplaced, or people can lose their X-ray films."

The system's Computerised Physican Order Entry module also enables doctors to enter orders for medication and laboratory and radiology tests directly into the computer, so healthcare staff do not need to spend time deciphering doctors' handwriting and can instead focus on executing the orders.

IT at its A&E centre has also helped to facilitate care coordination, resulting in faster and more efficient patient treatment.

And in what's called the "Dream Ward", technology has made it possible for patients to enjoy more than just first-class treatment at their fingertips.

Nurses said the bed management system, which they have been using for the past six months, is a welcome relief.

Jenny Ng Siew Fong, nurse manager of Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, said: "We used to take about 10 minutes, taking one parameter which is patients' blood pressure and temperature and saturation. Now with this system, it takes about five minutes or even less. 

"If we have continuous monitoring, which means to say every hour we have to take parameters, we can just leave the machine by the bedside and the system will continue to take the patients parameters every hour. And all we need to do is to save it and it's there already."

And for patients, there's also a user-friendly LCD screen that allows them to shop online, skype, control the lights and curtains - all in the comfort of their beds.


- CNA /ls


Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Consulting, Investment and Management, focusing three main economic sectors: International PR; Healthcare & Wellness;and Tourism & Hospitality. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programs. Sign up with twitter to get news updates with @SaigonBusinessC. Thanks.

No comments:

Post a Comment