\u201cI am generally quite\u00a0modest\u00a0\u2013\u00a0I\u00a0don\u2019t like to brag about\u00a0my\u00a0achievements\u00a0too much. But in this case,\u00a0I\u00a0want to make an exception.\u00a0I\u00a0want to tell the world what we have done.\u201d<\/p>\n
For\u00a0Ed\u00a0de Myttenaere,\u00a0CIO at Northwest Clinics hospital\u00a0(Noordwest\u00a0Ziekenhuisgroep)\u00a0in\u00a0the Netherlands, breaking with tradition is becoming increasingly\u00a0normal. In responding to the\u00a0COVID-19 outbreak, his team\u00a0have implemented a virtual consultation solution that has\u00a0the potential to redefine healthcare across\u00a0Europe\u00a0and beyond.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople were scared when the crisis started,\u201d recalls de Myttenaere.\u00a0\u201cPatients were scared to come to the hospital, and doctors\u00a0desperately wanted to\u00a0treat their patients. We needed to find a solution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working with Dutch\u00a0Microsoft\u00a0partner\u00a0ChipSoft, Northwest Clinics developed\u00a0and implemented\u00a0a secure, simple and intuitive solution to bridge the gap between doctors and their patients \u2013 all in a matter of weeks.<\/p>\n
Built around Microsoft Teams and embedded into the hospital\u2019s electronic medical record (EMR) system, not only is the solution\u00a0one of\u00a0the first of its kind in the world \u2013 it is also delivering fantastic results, despite the trying circumstances.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am extremely proud of what we have done,\u201d says de Myttenaere.<\/p>\n
Northwest Clinics is a hospital based in the north of the Netherlands. With over\u00a05,000\u00a0staff\u00a0and a potential\u00a0600,000\u00a0local\u00a0drop-in patients,\u00a0the hospital runs a\u00a0huge operation\u00a0\u2013 even before taking into consideration\u00a0the many chronic\u00a0patients\u00a0that\u00a0are referred\u00a0from further afield.<\/p>\n
So\u00a0when the hospital was forced to transform its operations overnight during the COVID-19 outbreak, it required quick and decisive action from everyone at Northwest Clinics to keep that operation going.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the crisis started, it transformed the hospital,\u201d recalls de Myttenaere. \u201cWe\u00a0had to\u00a0change\u00a0the function of many of our wards to accommodate patients\u00a0who\u00a0required either testing or treatment for COVID-19.\u00a0That meant\u00a0increasing the hospital\u2019s\u00a0intensive care unit (ICU) capacity\u00a0by\u00a0something like\u00a0300% overnight. It was a huge pressure on\u00a0Northwest Clinics,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe closed the hospital for normal use.\u00a0Of course, our emergency room was still open for severe health issues like haemorrhages or heart failure. But\u00a0there were no longer consultations for patients who weren\u2019t either suspected of\u00a0having, or\u00a0had been diagnosed with COVID-19.\u201d<\/p>\n
With normal\u00a0in-person\u00a0consultations\u00a0stopped, the IT team at Northwest Clinics needed to move fast to ensure a continuity of care for its many patients.\u00a0Suddenly, a solution that allowed for virtual consultations became an overnight necessity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe solution we implemented uses Microsoft Teams to allow patients and doctors to continue to meet in a secure and familiar digital environment,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Northwest Clinics is a hospital based in the north of the Netherlands.<\/p>\n
At the heart of every hospital\u2019s operations is its EMR system.\u00a0It is the key source of information for medical professionals,\u00a0containing\u00a0every patient\u2019s results, diagnoses and medical history.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe\u00a0most important thing is\u00a0that\u00a0the\u00a0new solution\u00a0integrates\u00a0with\u00a0our\u00a0EMR,\u201d says de Myttenaere.\u00a0\u201cThat makes everything very safe and secure\u00a0because you don’t send a Teams\u00a0meeting request\u00a0link to the patient\u00a0via email. It’s\u00a0all\u00a0done from our EMR and patient portal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The solution was developed by\u00a0EMR solutions provider and\u00a0Microsoft Gold partner,\u00a0ChipSoft, which specialises in digital solutions for healthcare professionals.\u00a0\u201cWe wanted to develop a product that was very intuitive and very simple, so anyone can use it,\u201d says George van Dijk, Senior Developer at\u00a0ChipSoft.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what we have done with the solution for Northwest Clinics. As a\u00a0patient, when\u00a0you make an appointment you don’t have to\u00a0interact\u00a0with Teams. You just make an appointment\u00a0through the EMR portal, using the login details you already have.\u00a0The system then communicates\u00a0with Microsoft Teams to set up the video meeting.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat makes the whole solution very\u00a0simple, and very\u00a0secure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe\u00a0system\u00a0is very intuitive, so you don\u2019t\u00a0need\u00a0any training to use it,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0de Myttenaere, comparing the online consultations to their in-person alternatives.\u00a0\u201cWhen patients\u00a0have\u00a0an appointment through the online portal,\u00a0they\u00a0then\u00a0wait in a virtual waiting room, and when the doctor is ready, they admit the patient into a virtual doctor\u2019s room.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe doctor then sees the patient on the left of the screen and the patient\u2019s records, medical history, results and everything else on the right.\u00a0So\u00a0they can read through all the notes and add more notes, all while maintaining eye-contact with the patient.\u00a0That’s\u00a0huge for the patient and the doctor.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd\u00a0feedback\u00a0has been tremendous,\u201d he adds. \u201cAll the\u00a0patients we have spoken to say it is easy to use and that it makes a big difference to see the doctor face-to-face.\u201d<\/p>\n
The\u00a0success of the\u00a0solution has resulted in approximately\u00a030% of\u00a0the\u00a0hospital\u2019s normal patients being seen by doctors\u00a0during the\u00a0COVID-19\u00a0lockdown period. \u201cWe are hoping\u00a0to\u00a0increase that to\u00a045% very soon,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u201cAlthough there are limitations due to\u00a0the\u00a01.5-meter\u00a0distancing\u00a0measures currently\u00a0in place.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is good for patients, but also\u00a0for a private hospital like Northwest Clinics\u00a0it\u00a0is crucial from a business point of view. And it is a huge opportunity for the hospital going forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe future started\u00a0twelve\u00a0weeks ago,\u201d says\u00a0de Myttenaere, reflecting on the lasting impact of COVID-19.\u00a0\u201cAnd I believe that the way we are working now is the new normal.<\/p>\n
\u201cMedical staff will\u00a0continue to\u00a0use\u00a0Teams with video consulting\u00a0going forward.\u00a0And as\u00a0the number of medical staff using it increases, so the success of the solution will increase. It\u00a0will be one of the\u00a0defining\u00a0communication solutions\u00a0of healthcare\u00a0in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is\u00a0the\u00a0solution\u00a0that de Myttenaere\u00a0sees shaping the fundamental workings\u00a0of hospitals\u00a0in the future. \u201cI believe\u00a0more and more virtual hospitals\u00a0will be built\u00a0to\u00a0provide\u00a0services\u00a0that\u00a0currently\u00a0patients\u00a0physically visit the hospital for,\u201d he says. \u201cSo\u00a0we have to\u00a0continue to\u00a0develop\u00a0the means and methods to\u00a0treat patients remotely.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is\u00a0a\u00a0forward thinking and ambitious\u00a0vision, but one that fits well with Northwest Clinics approach to healthcare.\u00a0The solution they have developed\u00a0is adding to the hospital\u2019s\u00a0already-stellar\u00a0reputation, and is attracting the attention of other hospitals\u00a0eager to emulate\u00a0its pioneering EMR system.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the Netherlands,\u00a0our hospital is\u00a0already well-known\u00a0for its\u00a0innovative programs\u00a0and\u00a0modernized technology,\u201d says de Myttenaere proudly. \u201cBut since we have launched\u00a0this\u00a0system,\u00a0I get about four or five\u00a0phone calls\u00a0a week from colleagues at other hospitals\u00a0who\u00a0want to know how we did it.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo\u00a0I am extremely\u00a0glad\u00a0to be able to share\u00a0the\u00a0story\u00a0of how we\u00a0did it, so other\u00a0hospitals\u00a0can\u00a0start\u00a0offering\u00a0their patients\u00a0this type of service going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is proof that, despite the challenging circumstance hospitals like Northwest Clinics face during this difficult time, there may be some outcomes that offer hope of a brighter, more efficient,\u00a0digitally-driven\u00a0future for both patients and doctors\u00a0alike.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cI am generally quite\u00a0modest\u00a0\u2013\u00a0I\u00a0don\u2019t like to brag about\u00a0my\u00a0achievements\u00a0too much. But in this case,\u00a0I\u00a0want to make an exception.\u00a0I\u00a0want to tell the world what we have done.\u201d For\u00a0Ed\u00a0de Myttenaere,\u00a0CIO at Northwest Clinics hospital\u00a0(Noordwest\u00a0Ziekenhuisgroep)\u00a0in\u00a0the Netherlands, breaking with tradition is becoming increasingly\u00a0normal. In responding to the\u00a0COVID-19 outbreak, his team\u00a0have implemented a virtual consultation solution that has\u00a0the potential to redefine […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":665,"featured_media":360121,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1804,1911],"class_list":["post-360067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-customer-stories-en","category-digital-transformation-en","specials-work-productivity-en","verticalIndustries-healthcare-en","stories-digital-culture-en","stories-how-can-i-create-the-office-of-tomorrow-en","businessPriorities-modern-workplace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360067"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/665"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=360067"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":368261,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360067\/revisions\/368261"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/360121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=360067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulse.microsoft.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=360067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}