Equipped for Efficiency: Improving Nursing Care Through Technology

Equipped for Efficiency:
Improving Nursing Care Through Technology
CALIFORNIA HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION
December 2008
Equipped for Efficiency:
Improving Nursing Care Through Technology
Prepared for
California HealtHCare foundation by Fran Turisco, M.B.A., research principal Jared Rhoads, M.S., senior research analyst
CSC
December 2008
About the Authors
Fran Turisco is research principal and Jared Rhoads is a senior research analyst at CSC’s Emerging Practices, the applied research arm of CSC’s Global HealthCare Sector. CSC is a global consulting, systems integration, and outsourcing company based in Falls Church, Virginia.
About the Foundation
The California HealthCare Foundation is an independent philanthropy committed to improving the way health care is delivered and financed in California. By promoting innovations in care and broader access to information, our goal is to ensure that all Californians can get the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. For more information on CHCF, visit us online at www.chcf.org.
©2008 California HealthCare Foundation
Contents
2 3
5
I. Introduction II. Overview
How Technology Can Help
III. Technologies That Enhance Nursing Care Delivery
Wireless Communications
Real-Time Location Systems
Delivery Robots
Workflow Management Systems
Wireless Patient Monitoring
Electronic Medication Administration with Bar Coding Electronic Clinical Documentation
Interactive Patient Technologies
IV. Summary
Appendices:
A: Interviewees B: Vendors
Endnotes
24 25
28

I. Introduction new teCHnologies Have tHe potential to Create a better work environment for inpatient nurses by improving the efficiency, safety, and quality of care. Advances include wireless communications, real-time location systems, delivery robots, workflow management systems, wireless patient monitoring, electronic medication administration with bar coding, electronic clinical documentation, and interactive