NWZ uses the Workstation on Wheels to improve communication

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Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep

The Workstation on Wheels helps patients communicate better with their doctor and those at home

Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep is a hospital organization with locations in various cities in the Netherlands. NWZ is among the top for treatment quality and quantity. In the larger Noord-Holland Noord region, they are at the forefront of introducing new research methods, techniques and treatment methodologies. The size of Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep creates an opportunity for valuable scientific research at scale.

INDUSTRY

Healthcare

SOLUTIONS

Meetup, Tap

LOCATION

Multiple locations in the Netherlands

ALLIANCE PARTNERS

Microsoft, Philips, Ergotron, Intel

WEBSITE

www.nwz.nl

“WoW has improved communication between patients in the hospital and those at home.”

Juliëtte Zaal
Unit Head of Pulmonary Diseases

Overview

Logitech, Ergotron, Wortell Videobutler, Microsoft, Intel, Philips and TechData have joined forces to assist hospitals that need mobile communication solutions. With Workstation on Wheels (WoW), patients can keep in touch with their loved ones and family members during extended hospital stays.

WoW has been well received by IT and management, and nursing staff adoption has been high. One of the hospital’s nurses was designated the internal ambassador for WoW. The use of an ambassador has further accelerated and facilitated the adoption of this new technology.

Challenge

Over the past eighteen months, the demand for care at a distance, or telehealth, has grown tremendously. COVID hit healthcare especially hard and accelerated the development of mobile video solutions. It can be difficult for family members to visit relatives in the hospital.

Severely ill or elderly patients do not always have the strength, access or ability to use cell phones and tablets. In the case of isolated patients, it can be difficult to have a conversation with the doctor, nursing staff and those at home, at the same time. WoW is a simple solution for these groups to remain connected.

Solution

Logitech for Business, Ergotron, Wortell Videobutler, Microsoft, Intel, Philips and TechData have joined forces for hospitals that need a mobile communication solution. With the Workstation on Wheels (WoW), they offer a perfect solution to help patients keep in touch with their loved ones and family members during an extended hospital stay.

WoW is composed of several products, including Logitech’s Tap Scheduler and MeetUp, which work together seamlessly. This makes it possible for patients to make video calls to relatives at home easily, securely and comfortably during extended hospitalization.

WoW mobile unit is equipped with Logitech MeetUp, a Philips display for high video and audio quality, and Logitech Tap for one-touch operation. These products are all controlled by NUC, an Intel minicomputer. These solutions allow patients to easily make video calls to their loved ones using software specially developed by Wortell, Videobutler and Microsoft Teams.

Nurses always know what to expect and they don’t have to worry about switching hardware and software so their focus can be on quality of care. This technology is also used to connect doctors and nurses to each other in different locations.

Results

The solution was created so that it felt familiar to NWZ’s hospital staff. WoW is built on a mobile and height-adjustable medical trolley, with a rechargeable battery that allows it to stay charged for 10 hours.

In addition to being a solution for patients, it is also easier for doctors to organize group discussions with patients’ family members. Moreover, hospital staff can easily connect with each other for team meetings, and to safely visualize quarantine areas for necessary maintenance. An added benefit for NWZ is that nurses are already working with mobile units for documentation and the dispensing of medicines, so operating WoW was simple and intuitive.

Working with an ambassador within the Pulmonary Department where WoW was deployed sped up adoption of this new solution. The internal NWZ ambassador serves as a point of contact for problems and is on hand for assistance. IT also found WoW to be very easy to integrate technically within the existing ecosystem, by connecting MeetUp and Tap to the hospital’s existing Wi-Fi network.