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2002
Implementation of electronic patient records and mobile units in Vindafjord municipality
The study is in two parts: an evaluation of economic consequences, and an evaluation of the implementation process in which the main focus will be on organizational and professional change.
Vindafjord is a farming municipality with approximately 5000 inhabitants in the southwest of Norway. The municipality is relatively large in area (444 km2) and has a quite scattered population, which implies that home health workers have to travel long distances. Vindafjord is thus a fairly average Norwegian municipality.
The background for Vindafjord's wish to introduce technology in the municipal services for the care of the elderly and disabled lies is partly in a municipal council decision of December 2000 that 6 posts be cut from the care sector. The sector was also required to carry out a fundamental simplification and rationalization of its services. The decision spurred the drawing up of a new plan, called "Ny pleie og omsorgstjeneste" [New services for the care of the elderly and disabled] which included proposals for action to be taken. One measure proposed in the plan was the introduction of full-scale use of electronic patient records and mobile units in the care sector. Vindafjord Municipality will thus experience a transition to the use of new technology in the care sector. Evaluating and documenting this process will be important and useful also for other municipalities which will face similar challenges in the future.
By introducing ICT, the management wants to achieve several things: better coordination of services, simplification of administrative procedures, as well as making it easier for employees to keep track of their work schedules and gathering information about individual patients. Vindafjord wants to completely abandon its paper-based system in favor of an electronic system for the provision of care to the elderly and disabled. 20 mobile terminals (Husky FEX21) and 13 desktop terminals have been purchased. This change requires employees to be good at collaborating and to have the necessary ICT skills.
The reorganization in Vindafjord will lead to changes in the everyday lives of most of the employees. All patient information will now be available on the terminals in the area office (the administrative office for services within a particular geographical area). Here, employees can access the information they need and also enter new information. In addition, it will be possible to compare patients who, for instance, have the same condition. Those working in the home care services will have access to the same patient information on their mobile terminals. The nurses can download medical record information about particular patients either before they leave, or while they are in a patient's home. They can also enter reports about particular patients into the computer system while they are out. The municipality wants to implement this system in order to make better use of the nurses' time, and also, for example, transfer the extra time to patient activities.
Project period
2002-2003
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