Healthcare technology and IP communications specialist, The Wandsworth Group, and critical voice and data communications company, Airwave Healthcare, showed for the first time at Healthcare Estates 2012 a system they say seamlessly integrates the former’s IPiN nurse call system and the latter’s patient entertainment hospital televisions to enable patients to quickly send medical or other staff anywhere within a healthcare facility non-urgent messages via portable handsets.
The ‘IPiN Everywhere’ system harnesses the TCP/IP technology of Wandsworth’s IPiN nurse call system – which is designed to be easily reconfigurable to adapt to a hospital’s changing needs, and to allow connection to other bedhead equipment. Patients can send a variety of non-urgent (although the system can be tailored to allow transmission of more urgent messages) messages to particular staff via a colour touchscreen interface developed, initially, for Airwave’s 32 in medical grade television sets. They can, for instance, let nurses know that they need to visit the toilet, or require their room temperature adjusted, or inform estates personnel that, for example, their television remote control is not working, or request particular meals. Nurses, clinicians, and other staff users, wear a unique user ID locator badge, and receive calls on portable Android handsets. By using a purpose-designed ‘app’ on the handset, they can identify the call’s nature, the patient, the location, and the degree of urgency. The system can also be set up so that certain levels and ‘types’ of staff – from cardiologists to catering teams – only receive certain calls. James Woodfield, sales and marketing co-ordinator at The Wandsworth Group, explained, on a joint Wandsworth/Airwave stand at Healthcare Estates 2012, that the technology is seen as an ‘adjunct’ to existing nurse call equipment, and ‘will not interfere with it’. He said: “We have worked closely with Airwave to develop a system that is easy to install, and simple for patients and staff to use. The IPiN Everywhere ‘app’ is unique, and is currently being rolled out across hospital sites in Denmark. Alongside allowing patients to locate and, if the system is voice-equipped, speak to a staff member, patients can be given their own nurse call button so that, when, say, they visit the bathroom, they can still contact staff.” Calls are simultaneously logged separately from other nurse calls both at the nurses’ station, and on the healthcare facility’s own data logging system, and the staff member responding can press a button to confirm their attendance. James Woodfield added: “The system’s flexibility is such that there are numerous potential future add-ons. We developed the software in-house, and, while the ‘app’ is currently only available for Android handsets, there are plans to develop apps for other platforms.”
