Hereford General Hospital A&E Department selects Excelicare™ VC from AxSys as their Minor Injuries Unit telemedicine system

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Hereford General Hospital A&E Department selects Excelicare^TM VC from AxSys as their Minor Injuries Unit telemedicine system
In October 2001, the Excelicare^TM VC version 1.5 clinical video-consultation system went 'live' in the A&E Department at Hereford General Hospital and the Minor Injuries Units at Leominster and Ross-on-Wye Community Hospitals.
The three systems provide real-time remote consultation between the MIUs and A&E using state-of-the-art videoconferencing technology. Staff at Hereford General can examine patients attending at either of the MIU's remotely, with the aim of improving the quality of care and reducing the number of unnecessary referrals to Hereford.
Staff in the A&E Department can control the pan/tilt and zoom video camera at the MIU in order to obtain the highest quality images during the consultation. In addition, the system includes a hand-held video camera for close-up examination as well as a high-resolution document/X-ray camera. Staff at the MIU can also view their colleagues at the A&E Department and two-way audio provides complete real-time remote consultation. Complementing the videoconferencing technology is a comprehensive clinical documentation and image management system that can also be shared and collaborated on, between the sites, during the consultation.
Commented Mr. Andrew Ballham FRCS FFAEM, Consultant in Accident & Emergency at Hereford General Hospital, "the main reasons for us putting in telemedicine and in particular the Excelicare^TM system were:

To maintain and improve the service to the patients at the Minor Injuries Units in our area, but with the possibility of expanding the system with the development of EPR to facilitate 2-way traffic of patients, both from the Minor Injuries Units to the DGH and also the reverse for follow-up treatment.

To have a seamless system of medical records, which can be accessed very quickly at either end and this system, because there has been a lot of medical input in its development, has considerable benefits.

It is easy to use, is flexible, and there is secure electronic authorisation of actions at a different unit from the base unit.

Mr. Ballham continued, "the system is designed as a very user friendly system and to this date there have been no problems with the staff at the peripheral units getting used to using it. It is in its early stages in Hereford but it has become evident it is a very flexible tool that can be modified to suit the needs of individual units whilst maintaining a common database. The initial use of the system has already led to most patients from one of the peripheral units being treated in the unit under clinical direction from the DGH and the patients so far have found it very acceptable."
"Experience at other sites in the UK has shown that videoconferencing can deliver immediate benefits to patients attending Minor Injuries Units and for the provision of Emergency Care as a whole" said Tony Carne, Marketing Manager at AxSys. "But what makes Excelicare^TM VC unique is that this technology is embedded seamlessly within a patient record, making it a complete, relevant and usable clinical tool"
In the light of the Department of Health's recommendations in 'Information for Health', the Excelicare^TM system can easily be upgraded to add further telemedicine modalities and full level 6, EPR functionality.

Should you require further information, Mr. Ballham FRCS FFAEM, Consultant in Accident & Emergency at Hereford General Hospital would be interested in discussing their telemedicine system with you and can be contacted at 01432 355 444.