The Evaluation of Wireless Devices Used by Staff at Westmead Hospital

Abstract

This chapter reports on a study to research and evaluate the use of latest generation wireless devices— typically personal digital assistant devices (PDAs)—by clinical staff at the large Westmead Hospital located in the west of Sydney, Australia. Currently, medical reports in this and other hospitals are primarily recorded on paper supported by personal computers at nursing stations. However, there is very little or no access to medical reports and decision-making tools for medical diagnosis at the patient’s bedside—the precise location at which most medical decision-making occurs. Delays in access to essential medical information can result in an increased time taken for accurate diagnosis and commencement of appropriate medical management of patients. This chapter discusses the application of hand held devices into more powerful processing tools connected to a centralised hospital data repository that can support medical applications.