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CDW and Zebra Help Stockport NHS FoundatION
Trust’s Blood Bank Facility INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY
AND ENHANCE Patient Safety

Stockport NHS Foundation Trust serves the Greater Manchester and High Peak areas through Stepping Hill Hospital and 10 community locations. The hospital has around 6,300 staff and provides care to over 300,000 patients annually. Aiming to optimise patient outcomes and staff well-being, the Trust partnered with CDW to revolutionise its IT infrastructure.  

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"The new blood tracking technology solution has been revolutionary in patient safety. By significantly reducing human errors, it ensures a seamless audit trail for each blood bag unit, enhancing traceability and speed."

 

Raisa Zaman, Technical Head of Haematology & Blood Bank Manager at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust

REVOLUTIONISING PATIENT CARE

 

 

In response to increasing demand and evolving healthcare needs, the Trust needed to implement and leverage a better technology environment to improve patient care and the work/life balance of their staff and clinicians due to increased demand and evolving healthcare requirements.  

The first step was to update the Trust’s outdated and unreliable network infrastructure. CDW implemented a state-of-the-art wireless network solution that covers all clinical areas and supports agile working for clinicians.  

With a robust and reliable infrastructure in place, CDW implemented technology solutions across the Trust that would help deliver better patient care, including Zebra handheld mobile devices that have revolutionised the blood traceability process within the Trust’s Blood Bank facility. This advanced system ensures end-to-end traceability of blood bag units, leveraging the Zebra handheld digital scanners to track each unit’s journey from donation to administration. 

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"We were very heavy on manual processes and the need was to leverage capabilities in new technology to increase patient care and flow."

 

Peter Hughes, Chief Technology Officer at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust

key BENEFITS

 

 

IMPROVED EFFICIENCES

The utilisation of Zebra handheld scanners has streamlined the blood tracking process, markedly  improving efficiency. The digitalisation of data collection expedites the workflow, allowing clinicians at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust to focus more on patient care rather than manual record-keeping.

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REDUCTION of HUMAN ERRORS

One of the most significant benefits is the reduction of human errors. The blood tracking solution’s precision in scanning and recording data minimises the risk of mistakes that can occur during manual entry. By automating the verification process, it ensures that each blood bag’s details are accurately captured, thereby safeguarding patient health.

ENHANCED PATIENT SAFETY

The blood tracking solution’s impact on patient safety is profound. It reinforces critical checks at the point of collection, verifying the blood bag number against the tag number. With automatic prompts and real-time validation, the system alerts clinicians if an incorrect unit is accessed, eliminating the possibility of administering the wrong blood type. 

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STREAMLINED TRACEABILITY

A complete audit trail is established, providing transparent and quick traceability of blood bag units. This feature is invaluable in scenarios where swift responses are required, ensuring that the right blood reaches the right patient without delay.

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"We knew we needed to be smarter to maximise our existing resources. The new technology makes sharing devices and information more seamless and has enabled us to provide the infrastructure and digital informatics to support a more agile working environment, where clinicians are not always stationary in one clinical area."

 

Holly Carr, Chief Clinical Information Officer and Clinical Safety Officer at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust 

 

Leading the Way for The Future of Healthcare

The Trust has already realised the solution’s capabilities in eliminating errors and reinforcing patient safety checks. The Zebra scanners have become an indispensable tool in maintaining the integrity of the blood supply chain, ensuring that each unit is tracked, traced, and transfused with maximum accuracy. 

The adoption of Zebra’s handheld scanners is a testament to the blood bank unit’s commitment to embracing technology for the improvement of patient care. As a result, the Trust stands as an exemplar of safety and efficiency, setting a new standard for blood traceability in healthcare.

 

 

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"At CDW, we are immensely proud to collaborate with Zebra Technologies as a strategic partner on this project for Stockport NHS Foundation Trust. Our joint efforts have delivered a technology solution that not only enhances efficiencies and patient safety, but also sets a new benchmark in healthcare innovation. The successful blood tracking system implementation at the Trust is a great example of our commitment to delivering transformative technology solutions that make a real difference in the lives of patients and the daily operations of healthcare professionals."

 

Phillipa-Winters

Phillipa Winter

Chief Technologist, Health and Social Care at CDW 

 

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