SubscribePanasonic’s Wireless Toughbooks to play a key role in the modern IT infrastructure in Derby Hospital NHS Foundation Trust hospitals.
Derby Hospital National Health Service Foundation Trust operate two state-of-the-art hospitals in the English county of Derbyshire. Both institutions offer a broad range of services from general medicine to accident surgery and rehabilitation to obstetrics. At a total of 1,157 beds, the two hospitals ensure enough capacity for the entire Derbyshire population of around 600,000 inhabitants. The Derby Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has created a model for the future in its new wireless technology-based IT infrastructure, ensuring high levels of quality and efficiency in medical care, with Panasonic's Wireless Toughbook Display CF-08 and Toughbook CF-18 fully integrated into the system.
Mobile Computing
The CF-08 was developed specifically with applications such as the broad scope of deployment in the health sector in mind. The light but sturdy portable display has replaced the staff's desktops or notebooks, and can be used anywhere in the hospital area for mobile computing. Apart from one-to-one communication between CF-08 and notebook, the
display can also be integrated into a multi-client system. Patient and administration data can be accessed, processed and updated in real-time using the WLAN network, wherever the user is in the hospital. This solution is particularly useful in securing the information flow in the broad range of services that the hospitals offer - doctors, nursing staff,
midwives and therapy specialists have information on tap at any time, and are constantly informed on any changes in patients' records as they happen.
Patients' records used to be written by hand, and then sent to a central collection point for updating and digitisation has given the hospitals an enormous boost in productivity. In particular, the error risk in matching recovery measures to diagnoses has been reduced to a minimum. Any information entered on the CF-08 is sent to a network server by WLAN and processed there - eliminating the need for a hard disc in the unit itself. The units are "thin clients" without any internal intelligence, completely preventing access to sensitive data outside the WLAN network.
Ruggedised Laptop
Cleanliness and hygiene are top priority in any medical institution to prevent infection and outbreaks of disease. Technical equipment also comes into contact with body fluids, and is always cleaned after use. The CF-08 can withstand any disinfectant - all of the connections such as the USB port, SD card slot, and speaker and microphone jacks are protected against intruding fluids and dirt by a special sealing system - a genuine benefit, considering the
constant exposure to daily wear that the devices are subjected to in their constant deployment during patient visits and therapy sessions as well as in the lab. As a wireless display in the fully ruggedised laptop category, the CF-08 was designed for these rough operating conditions, and is protected from vibration, knocks and even falls from 120 cm, or just under four feet, with its torsion-proof magnesium casing.
Despite its rugged construction, the CF-08 is especially popular among female staff due to its extremely light weight at 1.088 kilos, or just under 2.4 lb. The convenient carrying strap means that the CF-08 can be held securely in one hand, however hectic daily life in the hospital may be; at ten hours' battery life on one charge, the device is ideal for mobile applications. The 10.4-inch XGA touchscreen display features a clear layout and excellent contrast ratio for a crystal-clear picture. At a brightness of 460 cd/m², the display is easily readable even under direct light from outside. External peripherals can be connected via the integrated Bluetooth module, and there is an optional docking station for stationary work.
2 in 1 with the Panasonic Toughbook CF-18
In addition to the Wireless Toughbook Display, both of the Derbyshire hospitals have opted for the Panasonic Toughbook CF-18, which converts from a classical notebook onto a convenient tablet PC at a twist of the hand. The tilt-and-turn 10.4-inch XGA display simply folds over the keyboard. A sturdy convertible PC, the CF-18 is ideal for deployment under conditions typical of hospitals.
The shock-proof full-magnesium housing and hard disc enclosed in a special foam material and encased in an aluminium frame can withstand falls of up to 90 cm, or just under three feet. Apart from that, the Toughbook is protected from water and dust. Intel® CentrinoTM mobile technology running at 1.2 GHz supplies computing power for extreme flexibility, while the two antennae integrated into the screen housing allow ideal WLAN reception at
data transfer rates of up to 54 mbit/s. Together with Bluetooth or the optionally available GPRS module, hospital staff can also access electronic patient data in the hospital during house calls. The battery life of 8.5 hours on one charge also offers a distinct advantage here.
Toughbook Deployment
Both the Wireless Toughbook Display CF-08 and the Panasonic Toughbook CF-18 feature a high level of robustness, flexibility, networking ability, and ease of use. The first Toughbooks were deployed at the beginning of the year in the two Derby Hospital NHS Foundation Trust institutions; the plan is to connect every department to the new IT network infrastructure by the end of 2009, thus completely eliminating the paperwork in classical patient and administration record management. The project is based on a national initiative, by which all of Britain's NHS hospitals are to be converted to wireless technology.