BreastScreen Victoria (BSV), the Victorian Government’s breast cancer screening program, went live with Vitro Software’s specialised Breast Screening Digital Medical Record (DMR). Staff at St Vincent’s BreastScreen, located at St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne have now moved away from paper records and physical whiteboards. Staff now manage all client records digitally. They can track a client’s assessment journey directly from their workstations using a fully digitised Client Journey Board. The Journey Board colour-codes the client status in real time assisting staff to track client progress through the assessment clinic, creating operational efficiencies for BSV and providing clients with an improved experience... 

At Vitro Software we undergo regular audits for the internationally recognised ISO 9001:2015 standard by an independent certification company. This is to ensure our quality management system is operating at its best. Our QMS acts as a framework to ensure we deliver the best possible service to our clients, so we are delighted when we receive independent validation of our systems. As 2020 has been the year of going virtual, our team and the independent auditors worked together this year to remotely go through the auditing process, and we are delighted to receive certification until 2023.

Digitised records are a key component for successful healthcare. Paper-based records are not just inefficient and take up space, “they also carry the risk of spreading infection”, Nash said. There is a risk of them getting lost, Nash points out. It’s not unusual for hospitals to transfer records around cities “in the back of taxis and even the basket of bicycles”. That’s before you factor in the risks of doctors’ handwriting. EMR is a more efficient, lower-cost option for hospitals that includes the eradication of unnecessary duplicate tests and provides better outcomes for patients, he added. It’s also an area in which Ireland lags.

As we begin to see the COVID-19 restrictions lift in Ireland, our public hospital system will come under huge strain as it works to tackle waiting lists which were already the longest in Europe pre-crisis - they will have to operate at just 80% of capacity. The release valve for this pressure will in theory come from the private hospitals, under the agreement signed with the Irish government in March. The patients relevant medical history needs to be shared between hospitals in a secure & reliable way to reduce repeat diagnostic tests, risk and potential delays. Technology is the obvious answer, Vitro Software's PIM solution allows authorised clinicians to access a patients record using PCs or Tablets - a quick to implement system with minimal training requirements...

Healthcare systems around the world are under immense pressure at the moment, whether in the planning stage to mitigate against what might come, or facing it head-on as we speak. While always cognisant of the important service our healthcare workers provide, including those with whom we work daily, we are especially aware & grateful for their service in the current environment. We have taken precautions to help limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus and protect our employees; hence our teams are encouraged to work from home for the moment. We want to reassure our customers that our infrastructure allows us to continue to support them fully in this environment. We have a range of digital solutions which can help hospitals, COVID-19 test centres and home care operators deal during this pandemic...