Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has made history as the first UK organization to implement Altera Digital Health’s innovative patient flow solution.
The implementation took place at the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in March 2024, with the primary goals of enhancing operational efficiencies, elevating patient safety, and optimizing discharge processes.
The introduction of Altera Patient Flow has revolutionized the way ward staff, bed management teams, porters, domestic staff, and infection control teams operate, either directly or through integration with the existing Altera Sunrise electronic patient record system.
This cutting-edge system offers real-time visibility of bed status, availability, and patient movements throughout the hospital, enabling proactive management of both emergency and elective patient flow.
Pam Green, Deputy Director for Clinical Informatics and Chief Nursing Information Officer at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh, expressed her satisfaction with the staff’s positive reception of the new technology.
Porters are now equipped with iPads for managing job lists, while the domestic team can prioritize cleaning tasks based on bed reservations displayed in the system, allowing for enhanced infection control measures.
Kevin Parker-Evans, Chief Nursing Officer at the trust, highlighted the significant cultural shift driven by digital transformation, emphasizing the importance of utilizing real-time data for efficient decision-making.
With plans to expand the system to Wrightington Hospital and day surgery sites, Mary Fleming, Chief Executive of Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh, highlighted the pivotal role of patient flow management in creating an integrated healthcare system that caters to patient needs and staff efficiency.
Rachael Fox, Executive Vice President, EMEA at Altera Digital Health, affirmed the ongoing commitment to extend the system across the trust’s facilities, underscoring the continued dedication to modernizing healthcare practices.
