SUPPORT SERVICES


Digital technology can aid task management


Matt Jeffreys, Commercial director of Healthcare at Wandsworth Group, discusses some of the key benefits of digital technology in improving task management in hospitals and other healthcare facilities – in areas ranging from catering and cleaning to portering and bed management.


Hospital support services are the backbone of healthcare operations. They encompass a wide range of functions essential for the smooth running of a hospital. These services include everything from cleaning and maintenance to portering, catering, and security. They ensure that the hospital environment is clean, safe, and conducive to patient care. Additionally, support services often handle logistical tasks like equipment management, waste disposal, and transportation. While often overlooked, these departments play a critical role in patient experience, staff satisfaction, and overall hospital efficiency. Task management for support services is an undeniably


complex challenge for NHS Trusts. The sheer volume and variety of tasks demands a sophisticated system, and the dynamic nature of a hospital environment – with unexpected emergencies and fluctuating staffing levels – adds further complexity. It is impossible, for example, for a surgeon to perform an operation if the operating theatre has not been cleaned first, and a radiologist cannot undertake an MRI scan if their patient hasn’t been transported to the radiology ward.


Integrating data from disparate systems Integrating data from disparate systems, ensuring clear communication between support staff and clinical teams, and complying with stringent regulations while maintaining efficiency, are also significant hurdles. Additionally, limited resources often constrain the ability to effectively manage and prioritise tasks. These factors collectively make task management a formidable challenge for hospital support services. Many NHS Trusts lack a unified task management solution, and are instead dealing with an inherited patchwork of systems which, while serving their purpose at the time, may not be interoperable or efficient for modern task management needs. Departmental silos are common across Trusts, as different support services within a hospital have often operated independently, leading to the adoption of separate systems for different departments. This lack of integration hinders overall efficiency, and creates information silos.


Manual and paper-based systems Historically, hospitals have relied on manual and paper- based systems for managing the wide variety of support service tasks. These methods may have sufficed in the past, but they often present significant challenges in terms of efficiency and accuracy. Paper-based systems typically involve creating and distributing physical task lists. Staff members manually record task completion, which can be time-consuming and error-prone. Paper-based systems are susceptible to damage, loss, or misplacement, leading to task omissions or delays. They also hinder real-time communication and collaboration among staff members, and often lack visibility into overall workload and resource allocation.


Manual task allocation is another common practice,


whereby managers assign tasks based on their knowledge of staff availability and skills. This method is susceptible to human error, uneven workload distribution, and difficulties in tracking task progress. Manual systems make it challenging to generate reports and analyse performance metrics, hindering process improvement initiatives. They also struggle to adapt to changing priorities and unexpected events, as information is often siloed and not easily accessible. Crucially, the time spent on manual task management detracts from staff availability for patient care and,


Collaboration between Østfold Hospital’s porter service and care units has ‘vastly improved’ since the implementation of the DNV Imatis platform.


October 2024 Health Estate Journal 103


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