Christchurch, New Zealand, 5 May 2010 – Emendo has signed a regional contract with SA Health in South Australia to improve capacity planning, bed management and performance management in six key metropolitan hospitals throughout the state.
Emendo’s capacity planning software, CapPlan, has been used at Royal Adelaide Hospital since 2006, where the system has been successfully implemented to improve patient flow. Now CapPlan will also be implemented in Lyell McEwin, Modbury, Queen Elizabeth and Women’s and Children’s hospitals, and Flinders Medical Centre.
From June 2010 these hospitals will for the first time be able to view ‘at a glance’ the future status and expected staffing and resource requirements for in-patient and emergency wards. Similar functionality for theatres will be included in a further roll out later in the year. Staff can model different scenarios, taking into account seasonal fluctuations in demand, and proactively plan leave rosters, bed allocations and theatre schedules accordingly. Demand can be predicted for the next six to eight weeks in line with staff rosters, or as far forward as three to five years to assist with funding, building and capital expenditure plans.
Extending the use of CapPlan in three regions is part of South Australia Health’s Capacity Management and Access strategy. This is designed to improve long term contingency planning, remove bottlenecks in accessing beds and introduce consistent performance monitoring in the six hospitals, which together represent almost 2500 beds.
David Swan, SA Health’s Operation’s Director, says, “The use of CapPlan in these six hospitals presents a major step to assist us in how we plan and manage health resources. The people who manage hospital facilities will now have an accurate long term forecast, allowing them to proactively plan ahead for major public events.”
Nick Burns, Director at Emendo, says, “We are looking forward to applying the practical experience and insights gained at Royal Adelaide Hospital to a regional roll out in South Australia. From results to date in Australia and internationally, we know that capacity planning leads to a better experience for patients and staff while also creating cost savings as resources align with demand.”
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About Emendo
Emendo develops CapPlan, a healthcare-specific capacity planning tool which uses algorithms to match staff and physical resources, including beds and theatres, with patient demand. Hospitals in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and Canada are using CapPlan to forecast patient demand for a ward, a whole hospital or a region, for periods of up to five years. For more information about CapPlan go to www.emendo.co.nz
For more information or an interview, please contact:
Paul O’Leary, for Emendo
Pursuit Public Relations
paul@pursuitpr.co.nz
+64 272 795 742
Jon Logie
Media and Communications Unit
SA Health
jon.logie@health.sa.gov.au
+61 8 8226 6488