INDUSTRY WATCH
PATIENTS AT KACOLD
ALSO FOUND IT EASIER
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
HOSPITAL OPERATIONS
AND INTERACT WITH THEIR
CARE TEAMS.
The HIMSS Davies Award of
Excellence recognises the
thoughtful application of
health information and technology
to substantially improve clinical
care delivery, patient outcomes and
population health around the world.
“The HIMSS Davies Award of Excellence
for KFSH&RC Riyadh and Jeddah shows
the maturity and interoperability of our
integrated clinical information system
(ICIS) since its inception more than 17
years ago,” said Chief Executive Officer,
Majed Al Fayyad, MD, MMM, KSFH&RC.
“To reach this level of excellence and,
more importantly, to share our lessons
with the wider health care community
is truly an enterprise-wide achievement
and speaks to the dedication, usage and
adoption of technology by our staff.”
Improved patient experience
helps reduce length of stay
By building a ‘smart’ facility at
KFSH&RC’s newest building, the King
Abdullah Centre for Oncology and Liver
Diseases (KACOLD), the KFSH&RC team
found a way to improve information flow
through an ever-increasing number of
medical devices and IT systems. During
implementation, multiple aspects of the
clinical workflow became automated and
devices, including patient TV monitors,
vital sign machines and electronic room
signage, all became integrated. More than
2,500 medical devices and 30 clinical
systems worked together to process 35
million transactions a day across clinical
and non-clinical systems. The initiative,
supported by utilising Cerner’s CareAware
suite, improved communications among
care teams and helped KFSH&RC’s efforts
to reduce length of stay for patients,
which fell by 9%.
KFSH&RC automated the flow of
information with the addition of electronic
patient status display, removal of manual
whiteboards and installation of digital
dashboards. At a glance, the dashboards
now provide clinicians quick information
about patients and their conditions.
Patients at KACOLD also found it easier
to learn more about hospital operations
and interact with their care teams. Staff
began educating patients on standard
safety precautions while providing
personalised education materials.
Some of this education came through
interactive television monitors in the
patient room. Those same monitors
allowed patients to alert clinicians to their
pain level or request food.
“We streamlined the flow of
communication between patients,
nurses, physicians and supporting staff.
It really improved patient outcomes and
created a significant improvement in
patient satisfaction,” said Chief Medical
Informatics Officer, Abdullah Alturki, MD,
MBBS, FAAP.
Increasing influenza
vaccination rates
Influenza rates don’t have a high and
low season in the Middle East, so the
virus infects patients throughout the year.
Combined with millions of visitors from
around the world, the KFSH&RC team
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