Nurses nurture NSW Health’s digital transformation
Share
News from NSW eHealth:
International Nurses Day is an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the 50,000+ nurses who play a critical supporting role in caring for patients across NSW Health, Australia’s largest public health system.
Held on Tuesday 12 May 2020’s celebration of the importance of nurses globally is all the more significant given their incredible work supporting the acute response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Across NSW, from Tweed Heads in the north to Tumut in the south, nurses combine their critical frontline roles with working alongside the state’s digital health agency eHealth NSW to roll out systems which enhance patient safety and care.
One of these nurses is Linda Ly, a practicing midwife from Liverpool Hospital and now the Clinical Engagement Manager for eHealth NSW’s Electronic Record for Intensive Care (eRIC) and Integrated Transitions of Care programs.
Her new role combines her reason for becoming a nurse – a love of helping people – with her passion for the ever-expanding field of digital health.
“My career has had two highlights,” she said. “One has been helping my sister as she gave birth to my nephew and another has been diving headfirst into the world of digital health, as it plays such a pivotal role in improving patient care by giving clinicians consistent access to data at our fingertips.”
Digital health tools have an immense power to assist nurses to care for the critically ill in intensive care units, said Karl Valdez, Clinical Engagement Manager for eRIC at Westmead Hospital.
“With technology advancing quite rapidly, digital health tools are becoming more prolific throughout the different specialties,” said Mr Valdez.
L-R: Nurse Karl Valdez shows Westmead Hospital ICU clinician Dr Bardia Aryaie the Electronic Record for Intensive Care, which captures patient data every minute from multiple devices.
“The ability to view patient data from ward to ward, and sometimes from one hospital to another, allows for a more streamlined approach, reducing the time needed on admission and discharge procedures and reducing any errors that may occur.”
Ms Ly finds the increased efficiency in managing patient-centric data through the use of digital health tools “exciting and very beneficial to my day-to-day activities”.
“I always aim to ensure patient safety and minimise risks and digital health tools assist me greatly with this,” she said.
Dr Mark Simpson, Executive Director for Clinical Engagement and Patient Safety and Chief Clinical Information Officer, eHealth NSW, honoured the efforts of all of the nurses working for and alongside eHealth NSW.
“We are blessed in NSW with such a high calibre of nurses and I want to thank them for their expertise, professionalism and compassion,” said Dr Simpson, adding that a number of Chief Nursing Information Officers are leading and supporting eHealth NSW to design, build and deliver the next generation of digital care for patients.
Ms Ly and Mr Valdez agree that nursing is more a calling than a job, requiring extensive reserves of empathy, compassion, professionalism and resilience.
“No two days are the same,” Ms Ly said. “There are always new and exciting challenges around the corner.”
Article first appeared on: http://www.ehealth.nsw.gov.au/
