I must say that as I write this article on emergency supplies tracking, I do so with a different perspective than I would have just a couple of weeks ago, since I recently had the misfortune of heading to my local emergency room for a 5-night stay at the hospital.
Ironically, the hospital was deploying a new electronic health record system within two hours of my arrival. Seeing as how I am familiar with the importance of emergency supplies tracking and patient tracking, it was an interesting view to be so intimately involved in the process.
I found my patient wristband as the hub of activity for any and all medications, tests and treatments. The nurses all learned a new cadence of scanning my wristband that contained my unique information each time they administered meds and found the “system” did not allow them to accidentally skip a step in the process. In fact, during my stay, there was technician working with my roommate who inadvertently came to take blood from me instead of my roommate – Yikes! Fortunately with the new system, the technician was able to quickly figure out his error!
From a patient’s perspective, I felt much safer knowing the medicines and treatments were for me and me alone. Additionally, it was noticeable how quickly the nurses were able to receive updates on my condition from the doctors, since they now had instant access to my most recent vitals. I also was able to find out the results of tests in a much more timely manner.
When I was starting to feel better after some time in the hospital, I had an interesting conversation with one of the head nurses about the new system and how emergency supplies tracking and patient tracking has changed in recent years. We both agreed patients are much safer with these new technologies. I’m curious to hear about your personal stories…please comment!
Photo used under Creative Commons from Fotos Gov/Ba.
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