Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Replaces Bleeps with Vocera Technology
September 10 2020 - 3:03AM
Business Wire
Effective communication improves patient
care before, during and after COVID-19
Vocera Communications, Inc. (NYSE:VCRA), a recognised leader in
clinical communication and workflow solutions, announced that Royal
National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) NHS Trust reported an 84%
improvement in care team response time after replacing bleeps with
the Vocera smartphone app and hands-free communication badge. After
deploying the Vocera solutions, mobilisation of the cardiac arrest
team at the 220-bed hospital went from an average of two minutes to
20 seconds.
Before implementing Vocera
technology in the 100-acre hospital, care team members would
receive bleep notifications that initiated a complex workflow.
Clinicians that received notifications were tasked with finding a
phone, calling the switchboard operator, writing down the message,
repeating it back to the operator, and responding
accordingly.
“We needed a faster, more
reliable communication system,” said Bela Haria, Information
Management and Technology Senior Project Manager at RNOH. “Bleeps
were falling to bits and had to be held together with tape.
Additionally, some areas in the hospital didn’t have bleep
coverage.”
During the peak of COVID-19,
RNOH extended its bleep replacement program, utilising the full
potential of the Vocera communication platform. The hospital went
from a controlled roll out to relying completely on Vocera
solutions for all bleeps, including all crash calls. The hospital
also quickly shifted from focusing on and performing elective
surgeries to preparing for and managing patient surges.
“In a 10-day period we turned
our quiet, elective surgery hospital into the orthopedic trauma
center for a large portion of north central London,” said Matt
Phillips, Lead Clinical Practitioner, Acute Intervention Team at
RNOH. “We suddenly went from caring for pre-assessed elective
patients, to having multiple trauma-related cases per
week.”
A global leader in orthopaedic
and spinal surgery, RNOH turned its private patient unit into a
respiratory therapy unit where most of the COVID-19 patients were
treated. The hospital equipped runners with wearable Vocera Badges
to bring necessary supplies to clinicians treating patients in the
make-shift isolations rooms. Runners could communicate with
clinicians without having to enter the rooms, eliminating the need
for runner to don personal protective equipment (PPE).
“Vocera technology sped up
communication and coordination during the peak of the COVID-19
crisis,” said Pauline Robertson, Head of Nursing for the Medicine
and Therapies at RNOH. “It helped us provide seamless patient care
without risking infection, and we were able to conserve precious
PPE.”
Vocera technology also helped
RNOH staff stay connected to team members outside the hospital
during the pandemic. Clinicians working in pop-up testing tents
that the British Army set up in the hospital’s car park were
equipped with Vocera Badges.
“If it weren’t for Vocera, we
wouldn’t have had a way to quickly and easily communicate with
staff working in our testing tents,” Phillips said. “Vocera
technology was brilliant because we didn't have to worry about
anything related to communication. We gave staff a badge, and we
were instantly at peace knowing they had a secure means to
communicate with each other and with the rest of hospital
staff.”
“It is impressive to see how Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital
unified staff and adapted so quickly in response to the changing
dynamics created by COVID-19,” said Brent Lang, Chairman and CEO of
Vocera. “The hospital exemplifies how effective communication in
healthcare can enhance the safety and well-being of patients,
frontline workers, and the broader community.”
About Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital
The RNOH was founded in 1905 with the amalgamation of London's
three specialist orthopaedic hospitals into a single centre of
excellence - the Royal (1838) in Hanover Square, the National
(1864) in Great Portland and Bolsover Streets, and the City (1851)
in Hatton Garden. The RNOH, the largest specialist orthopaedic
hospital in the UK, and a recognised world leader in the field of
orthopaedics, treats more than 120,000 neuro-musculoskeletal
patients a year for complex conditions ranging from acute spinal
injuries and bone cancer to chronic pain and joint
reconstruction.
About Vocera
The mission of Vocera Communications, Inc. is to simplify and
improve the lives of healthcare professionals, patients and
families, while enabling hospitals to enhance quality of care and
operational efficiency. In 2000, when the company was founded, we
began to forever change the way care teams communicate. Today,
Vocera offers the leading platform for improving clinical
communication and workflow. More than 2,100 facilities worldwide,
including nearly 1,700 hospitals and healthcare facilities, have
selected our solutions. Care team members use our solutions to
communicate and collaborate with co-workers by securely texting or
calling, and to be notified of important alerts and alarms. They
can choose the right device for their role or task, including
smartphones or our hands-free, wearable Vocera Smartbadge and
Vocera Badge. Interoperability between the Vocera Platform and more
than 150 clinical and operational systems helps reduce alarm
fatigue; speed up staff response times; and improve patient care,
safety, and experience. In addition to healthcare, Vocera is at
home in luxury hotels, aged care facilities, retail stores,
schools, power facilities, libraries, and more. Vocera solutions
make mobile workers safer and more effective by enabling them to
connect instantly with other people and access resources or
information quickly. Vocera has made the list of Forbes 100 Most
Trustworthy Companies in America. Visit www.vocera.com and follow
@VoceraComm on Twitter.
Vocera® and the Vocera logo are trademarks of Vocera
Communications, Inc. registered in the United States and other
jurisdictions. All other trademarks appearing in this release are
the property of their respective owners.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200910005299/en/
John Elias Vocera Communications, Inc +1 416 899-4976
jelias@vocera.com
Vocera Communications (NYSE:VCRA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Vocera Communications (NYSE:VCRA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024