SINGAPORE (Today), October 3, 2007:
Being warded in a hospital does not necessarily mean you will be disconnected from the outside world. Thanks to a pilot trial of a Patient Bedside Terminal (PBT)equipped with Web and entertainment features, Singapore General Hospital (SGH)patients like Mr Vincent Lee, 40, can access his email after he has surgery and stay
connected while he recuperates.
The sales manager who was warded on Monday for surgery for a slipped disc, said: “I was concerned about work, but having Internet access will help alleviate my worries.”
He even used the PBT to play games and watch TV during his stay.
The PBT — the newest addition to SingHealth’s Digital Ward initiative — is a touchscreen information system that is loaded with TV, radio and MobTV access, as well as medical data retrieval features and a video-enabled nurse-call system.
This means that doctors can call up X-ray images and blood test results at the patient’s bedside. According to Dr Chia Shi-Lu, an associate consultant with the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery where the PBT is being tested, the system is a “logical extension” in making healthcare more patient-centric.
“X-rays, for example, are a critical part of orthopaedic surgery and the PBT helps increase doctor-patient communication, in a timely and accessible fashion,” he said.
INFO BASE: Dr Chia uses the Patient Bedside Terminal – a pilot initiative by SingHealth – to retrieve patient records and explain them right at the bedside to patient Vincent Lee.
For Mr Lee, it was “definitely helpful” in his understanding of his condition. Nurses can key meal orders directly into the PBT instead of collecting forms and then entering the data at the nurses station. And a video-enabled nurse call now means that nurses can speak directly to patients from their station to see to their needs. It helps reduce waiting time and patient anxiety, said nurse clinician Zainah Rahmad.
SGH doctors and nurses worked with SingHealth’s IT team and IT vendor ISPL for one year to develop the $100,000 system, which was partially funded with a grant from the
Infocomm Development Authority.
The system, which was piloted in May, will be rolled out to all private wards in SGH upon successful post-trial evaluation, said Dr Chia.
So far, patient feedback has been good. Of 40 patients polled, 95 per cent said they preferred staying in a room with the PBT. And although the use of the PBT is free under the pilot scheme, about half of patients surveyed were willing to pay a proposed fee of $15 per day to use it.
It will be available from next month at the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH and Changi General Hospital to trial a virtual ward visit and a patient education module respectively. KKH’s virtual ward visit will allow parents unable to visit during morning ward rounds to “video conference” with doctors for updates on their children.
By Sheralyn Tay
Copyright ©2005 MediaCorp Press Ltd |
