Our Health Tech Awards 2022 finalists in the category of ‘new innovation of the year’ are:
Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Laudit
Overview: Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is helping NHS staff reach their potential, boosting morale, and showing how they are valued with the support of Laudit platform.
Why? Prior to the pandemic doctors reported they were burnt out and it was recognised that positive feedback helps to improve the wellbeing of staff and recognition for efforts.
What happened? RPH implemented an easy reporting system to capture the actions of clinician and non-clinical staff. Laudit allows staff to send positive feedback and is accessible on all digital platforms. It helps site-wide workforce analysis and reporting which are aligned to the values of the Trust. Line managers can also find out which members of the team have received a Laudit, identifying key performers. The scalability allows the platform to be applied to other NHS Trusts and organisations in the country.
Looking ahead: Since the launch, there have been thousands of Laudits sent with evidence of them increasing during busy periods, like the height of the pandemic. The hospital have since partnered with Amazon Web Services in developing Laudit into an app that is more accessible.
Ascenti
Overview: Ascenti Reach is a physiotherapy app service surrounding digital assessment on education, exercise programmes, and motivation.
Why? Ascenti recognised that there is a challenge in trying to captivate and engage patients in doing their own treatment, with 70% of patients failing to do their home exercises.
What happened? Through the Ascenti platform, patients can speak to a physiotherapist whenever is necessary, and determines whether they need treatment, or if an alternative pathway is required. Patients monitor their pain levels with physiotherapists monitoring progress and encouraging improvement through a 24/7 chat functionality. The app has access to educational content as it combines digital triage with self-management support through one journey.
Looking ahead: As long waiting lists still remain, an aim of Ascenti Reach within NHS care pathways would help patients with immediate support and less face-to-face interactions.
Eva Health Technologies Ltd
Overview: Eva Health collaborated with clinicians supporting the Covid-19 vaccination programme to ensure reliability and maximising benefits of a user-centred design.
Why? The pandemic voiced concerns of the legacy system built around clinical safety, ease of use and more. The system had struggled and so there was a call for a faster and more reliable software to support vaccinations.
What happened? The creation of eVacc supported the delivery of vaccines across different care settings such as GP surgeries and local vaccination centres, to which it was assured by NHS Digital. The platform was created in six months and was built fast to changing specifications. It is also safe and interoperable with quick and efficient data entry for staff, clinicians, and volunteers who are delivering vaccinations. 63 PCNs switched to the software and have not switched to their previous one.
Looking ahead: Work is being continued to better support patients during upcoming winter vaccination campaign and other vaccinations programmes alongside.
Worcestershire Acute NHS Hospitals Trust and #CallMe
Overview: #CallMe is digitally led innovation project that allows the printing of patients preferred names on hospital stickers and bands.
Why? Staff can use a patients preferred name when during a vulnerable time to personalise care, show respect, improve communication and build trust.
What happened? Following a clinical interaction between an adolescent patient and an anaesthetist, the patient was known by a different name and different gender to the one that was recorded. The initiative accompanies the patient starting at the point of admission all the way through to discharge. These will be seen by healthcare practitioners on observation charts, medical folders and more.
Looking ahead: After a local rollout, 60,000 #CallMe’s have been requested, with 31 percent of the population requesting to use them and has kept records up to date.
Antser Group and Darent Valley Hospital
Overview: Darent Valley Hospital, a member of Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust has developed the use of Antser Virtual Reality (VR) over the past two years for training for the hospital workforce.
Why? Antser is to provide transformational solutions to healthcare and other social sectors while enabling behaviour change programmes for children’s services and how it can be utilised at hospitals during safeguarding training programmes.
What happened? The solutions provided by Antser can include direct work with children, and compliance to training, technology and transformation to supply positive outcomes. Since 2020, the platform has been used as a training tool for the hospital workforce at hand. When the workforce is skilled in certain situations and equipped with the right knowledge, they can recognise them and the correct referrals can then be made. The implementation of VR has mean that safeguarding referrals have increased meaning that training is having a positive impact.
Looking ahead: Darent Valley Hospital and Antser are wanting to explore other opportunities where VR could be applied, which includes a stop smoking action and working with other partners to provide trauma-informed training.
