Virtual support technology could transform training for radiographers and reduce both training and scan time, a report by healthcare innovation firm Philips has found.
In its Future Health Index, title 'Better care for more people: Bridging gaps in healthcare', Philips identified high levels of burnout and low morale across the healthcare system, as well as the methods by which health leaders are trying to address this burnout.
One such method employed by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (ICH) suggested that implementing remote training experiences, via virtual support technology, could increase staff capabilities and capacity.
'Reducing pressures on the workforce'
Automation in healthcare is “critical for saving time and improving productivity, reducing pressures on an overstretched workforce”, the report said.
For ICH, this proved true. The Index explained that ICH faced high patient volumes without enough skilled radiographers to meet demand.
It conducted a 12-month pilot of virtual support technology known as Radiology Operations Command Center (ROCC) across its St. Mary’s and Hammersmith sites, to assess whether remote training could be effective and scalable.
'All radiographers have the opportunity to upskill'
The results were resounding – the pilot identified a 100 per cent increase in cardiac MRI training capacity, a 91 per cent increase in cardiac patients scanned in the the 5-8pm shift, and 50 per cent more radiographers trained.
Average MR scan time decreased by approximately two minutes per scan. For cardiac MR, scan duration decreased by 11 per cent (seven minutes) and for cardiac stress MR it decreased by 9 per cent (six minutes). During the pilot 40 per cent of the exams involved removal of unnecessary sequences.
Philip Gregory, clinical director at the London Imaging Academy and practice educator at ICH said: “We’ve doubled the number of staff that we can train in the same period by using ROCC. A super user can come in, access the command centre and within a minute they’ve got viewing access to multiple scanners across multiple sites, and that’s pretty unique.
“It means that all radiographers have the opportunity to upskill.”
'Shifting care closer to home'
Virtual care of this kind could ease the workforce crisis while improving patient access, Philips claimed. Just under two thirds (62 per cent) of UK healthcare leaders say clinicians feel positive about virtual care – lagging behind the optimism rate in the Netherlands (92 per cent) and Singapore (91 per cent).
Where they have seen virtual care technologies help to ease staffing pressures, leaders cite benefits such as more flexible work schedules for clinicians (62 per cent), added capacity to serve patients (51 per cent), improved collaboration between healthcare professionals in different locations (44 per cent) and more career options due to remote working (37 per cent).
However, with just 30 per cent of healthcare leaders saying virtual care has helped their organisations better reach underserved communities, (compared to 40 per cent in the US), there is still some way to go for virtual care to be fully leveraged to address challenges beyond staff shortages.
Mark Leftwich, managing director of Philips UK & Ireland, said: “We’re seeing the potential of innovation in delivering better care for more people. Focus must be on optimisation, using digital innovation to drive operational productivity and financial gains, whilst shifting care closer to home. Only then can we unlock the NHS’s true value.”
Read the full report here.
(Image: Mark Leftwich, by Eva Slusarek)