Health Care Informatics

IntroductionThis improves the streamlining of hospital process
Moving and relocating patients in and out of theeliminating time consuming and ineffective
emergency department (ED) is a laborious taskadministrative tasks. The mobile input and
and a struggle for most hospitals nationwide. Theextensions have proved successful. Physicians can
delays that result from these relocations can becapture data in a single screen note and use
very frustrating especially during the discharge oftouch to synchronize data. Ready access to
a patient. Many hospitals have tackled theimportant patient data is quickly acquired allowing
challenge through implementing and integrating thefor more patient interaction and attention (Austin,
McKesson’s patient tracking system into their2003).
Health Systems. The new technology has beenThe major output information on the board
able to redesign the health systems’tracking system will detail the resources and the
workflow and accelerated patient throughput,personnel to cater for the different patients being
thereby resulting to drastic reduction inrelocated to operation schedules or being
patient’s stay, enhanced care and eliminatingdischarged to effectively assess bed occupancy
diversion hours.and special patient needs. Vital patient information
McKesson Tracking Board Systemis processed and printed to store records.
Many hospitals face numerous challenges withPhysicians can access this vital information to
health systems that are not robust and do notdiagnose the various patients efficiently. Output
integrate admissions, discharge or transfer ofdevices that can be integrated into the McKesson
patients in their systems. This can lead to failedtracker can include online copiers, scanners and
communications and challenges of trackingstand-alone devices in a hospital’s admissions
patients from their rooms to procedures. Itprocesses. Managed print services can be
results to wasted time for the physicians makingintegrated into the McKesson system in the online
the rounds. Delays in bed coordinators,network so that information can be centrally
environmental service staff, and patientmanaged and monitored. Access to charts
transporters cause unnecessary inconveniences toprocessed by the tracker can be visible on
hospital facilities. However, the implementation ofhandheld palms, thus real time output to patient
the McKesson’s STAR Patient Locationinformation. This can allow relocation of staff and
Tracker in a hospital’s Health System, throughbudgets to more critical areas in communication
admissions, discharge and transfer (A/D/T)through the integrated health care systems. The
system, accelerates bed availability, trackhospital system can update admissions processes
transporters and patients, tracks bed utilization,and backup critical information.
provides productivity and utilization statisticsThe McKesson hardware system is configured for
through prediction and design by the trackingeasy installation with a network which is
system (Potter, 2005).HER-certified that makes it’s processing fast
The tracking system is interoperable andand efficient to data input, processing and output.
integrates into a hospital’s health system. ItsThe processing sequence of the tracker combines
functions are redesigned to shorten processeswith a HP processing system to generate
and length of stay by patients in the emergencyinformation relevant patients’ data input and
department with reduction of diversion hours. Thetrack their sequence predicting operations
system has a color coded dashboard whereschedule by physicians. The hardware which can
personnel admitting patients can accelerate thebe used with the board tracking system can
admittance process by checking the room statusinclude the Lytec MD management system which
of the facility. The staff, nurses or physicians andintegrates the feature of Bright Note Technology
even visitors can acquire information on awhich aids in the automation of physicians chart
patient’s location at any time. Differentprocesses. The installation package comes with
operations can be scheduled by physicians ontraining solutions, implementation and support
patients without diversion of time. When a patientsystems and services for personnel and
is discharged, the information is sent automaticallyphysicians in the hospital facility. Training and
to the tracking bed system which furthersupport documentation is provided to the staff in
generates housekeeping and patient transporterorder to acquire the knowledge of operating the
requests. The system allows efficientsystem.
management in an enormous environment. TheConclusion
board can be used to reassign duties to staff toThe McKesson tracking board system has
more hectic zones in the facility.provided hospital facilities by driving organizational
The tracking board system is used by manyalignment by keeping up to date in communication,
physicians and personnel acting both as an inputensure process compliance through increasing
and output device combined with the Practiceaccountability and transparency measures, and
Schedule Manager which is a flexible and powerfulpromote proactive behavior among the staff by
tool in a scheduling system which provides foranticipating various requests and needs of
room or equipment resources and personnelpatients.
simultaneously. Physicians can use various optionsReference:
to input data including templates, transcription,Austin, C. J. (2003). Information Systems for
speech recognition and keyboard entry. The needHealth Care Management. (6th Ed). Health
by physicians to retrieve same patientAdministration Press, Chicago.
information, led to implementation of thePotter, M. (2005). The Tracking Board: Innovations
McKesson tracker that extended clinicalin Advanced Practice.
information systems to handheld Palm devices.