A newly formed team of Dietitians at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) are now tech savvy thanks to a scheme which has helped them to go paperlite.
The Team based at Queen Victoria Centre in Morecambe wanted to develop and implement the use of mobile devices in their everyday work and so signed up to become part of Trust’s Listening into Action first wave Pioneering Schemes.
They worked for 20 weeks on their project which saw them work closely with the Trust’s IT department, swapping existing equipment for small laptops, docking stations and iPhones.
Katie Gillespie, Team Manager for Nutrition and Dietetics at RLI and QVC, said: “Dietetics cross bay were already paperlite for out-patients services but there was no framework to translate this to a community based service.
“The idea for our Pioneering Scheme sprouted from a casual conversation the team were having one Friday afternoon. Over the following few days the team discussed in further depth and realised this would totally revolutionise the way we were presently working.
“The scheme has improved patient experience, improved communication, improved our efficiency and supported governance issues.”
Adelle Blacow, Specialist Dietitian, said: “Before we went paperlite we were using countless sheets of paper for every patient."
"We now have laptops with docking stations and iPhones which have made us more efficient as we can log into WiFi hotspots when away from the office which means we can complete documentation which otherwise would not be completed until the following day.
"The new technology is also an added security feature for us.”
The team now plans to formally evaluate the changes and benefits of its service.
They have extended the paperlite project to include a trial with Ward 23 inpatients.