Digital Platform To Allow Paramedics and Hospitals To Share Patients’ Vital Signs in Real-Time
A new digital platform will let paramedics instantaneously share a patient’s vital signs while en route to the hospital, which could make for better chances of survival. Named Operational Medical Networks Informatics Integrator (OMNII), the platform will be used by paramedics in the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), hospital workers and other stakeholders in pre-hospital emergency care services in Singapore.
According to the SCDF, OMNII can streamline patient management as it makes it faster for its users to view, record and share patient data with one another.
Managed by the Defence Science and Technology Agency, the health technology system is a collaborative effort between the SCDF and the Ministry of Health (MOH). It is set to launch on 26 August 2021.
The platform will provide many changes to healthcare response as there is currently no real-time integration between a hospital’s emergency department systems and the SCDF. In effect, it will be difficult for paramedics to receive medical guidance as the patient is being transported to the hospital.
On the other hand, using OMNII can help improve patient outcomes as stakeholders will be able to take important steps before the patient reaches the hospital. They will pre-register the patient, send a standby alert calling for the patient’s pre-triage as well as share the patient’s vital signs along with photos and videos showing the person’s condition. The hospital will then activate its trauma team, prepare CT and/or X-ray rooms and pre-order medication.
A MOH spokesperson emphasised how receiving patient information ahead of time can save lives.
"For example, you have a drug allergy for a common drug like aspirin, which is what we give when a patient is having a heart attack because it helps to open up a blocked artery in the heart. But if you are allergic, we'd select a different medication that has the same effect."
With OMNII, healthcare workers can get patient data in real-time, making it faster for doctors to choose the right drug for their patients.
After a 995 call is placed and a patient is deemed "critical", a hospital’s emergency department will get a standby alert from paramedics on the ground. The staff will also receive the patient's vital signs as well as photos and videos taken at the scene, which can help the hospital select the correct medical resources and interventions for the patient.
When the situation calls for it, the emergency physician and trauma surgeon will devise a resuscitation plan for the patient with the information they received. While that is happening, a group of trauma surgeons will be notified of critical cases that might need their assistance.
Inside the ambulance, paramedics can pre-register the patient in the hospital’s system with OMNII. Pre-registration will begin the emergency department’s process of admitting the patient.
This will make preparations for treatment quicker. Here, OMNII can lessen the likelihood of human error as the real-time information delivered to the emergency physician will provide more accurate data about the patient’s condition.
If a patient’s condition declines en route to the hospital, the platform will let paramedics transmit immediate updates.
OMNII can also improve accuracy during patient handover as media depicting the patient’s condition shared on the platform can provide more details about the medical case compared to information relayed through verbal communication.
The patient’s records will subsequently be uploaded to the National Electronic Health Record. Once the case has been resolved, paramedics will delete the patient’s information from OMNII for data protection purposes.
Written by Sophia Lopez
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