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A
day in the life of Nurse Heavensent
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The Royal District Nursing Service in Victoria Australia recently
trialed the use of handheld computers (PDA). Following are some
examples of how fictional Nurse Heavensent used the PDA in one day
to send and receive emails, check databases, enter data and keep
notes. Each of the activities described below was achieved during
the trial.
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Commencing her workday from home, Nurse Heavensent
logs into the handheld computer and checks today's schedule
of visits. Using a mobile phone GSM data connection she connects
to the organisation's mainframe client information system. This
allows her to check for emails and adjust visits, allocate a
health aide to pick up one of her clients for today and check
what equipment she needs to take to a particular patient.
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Setting off to see her first client Nurse Heavensent
activates the handheld computer to measure the amount of travel
time.
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At the client's home, she uses the PDA to automatically
measure 'visit time'; and enter data describing the visit activities.
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Returning to her car, she reads an email, which
informs her that a colleague is ill and that she will need to
visit another client. A 'Client Information Inquiry' message
downloads the information about the new client. In response
to another email, she also enters the discharge details into
the PDA for a client who is about to enter hospital. Nurse Heavensent
also sends an email to the liaison nurse working in the hospital,
requesting follow up of this client.
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At a new client's home, the nurse enters Registration
and Financial details into the PDA and arranges when the next
visit will occur, entering this information into the scheduling
module.
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Returning to the Centre at the end of the day,
the nurse exchanges information with the mainframe client information
system via a wireless LAN connection.
The fictional case study is a composite of actual events during
the trials. The case study demonstrates how a combination of information
and telecommunication technologies can improve the efficiency of
the nurse's daily work processes and bring immediate benefits to
patients.
This is an excerpt from the report: From Telehealth to E-Health:
The Unstoppable Rise of E-Health
Prepared by John Mitchell of John Mitchell & Associates for the
Federal Australian Department of Communications, Information Technology
and the Arts (DOCITA)
( Reprinted with the generous permission
of the Federal Australian Department of Communications, Information
Technology and the Arts (DOCITA) who hold all copy rights to the
article.)
From
Telehealth to E-Health: The Unstoppable Rise of E-Health
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