Automation of patient care in the hospital

We constantly hear about patients being mistreated in hospitals. The consequences often include wasted time and sometimes even loss of health. The reason is staffing shortages: demand for hospital services exceeds supply. Lifting limits on physician training will bring about long-term change. What if we could now apply technological solutions and automation known from the private sector to minimize unnecessary activities burdening medical staff, frustrations and hallway conflicts?

A way to deal with staff shortages

The shortage of doctors, nurses, paramedics, and orderlies in hospitals is the result of many factors. The protest by resident physicians highlighted how many hours medical workers spend on duty, running between facilities—not for financial reasons, but out of a sense of mission and fear of the consequences of staffing shortages. Tremendous psychological strain, lack of sleep, meager pay, and frustrated patients are the main reasons for the shortage of workers in the medical sector.

To address this problem, widespread automation, as seen in manufacturing processes, and customer experience-based solutions could be implemented. In the long run, this represents a smaller investment than mutually satisfactory pay raises. This would allow staff to spend less time on tasks that machines could perform, freeing up time for the patient.

Solutions similar to those proposed below are already being implemented by specialist directors with extensive business experience. These include the one presented in the article on Wyborcza.pl titled:A hospital not on the outskirts” Director Jakub Kraszewski from the University Clinical Centre in Gdańsk.

Queue application

Systems already exist that classify patients based on their subjective assessment of the waiting time for help in emergency departments. Patients marked red need help immediately, while "green" patients can wait up to several hours. The queue for a standard hospital doctor also uses "numbers," but these don't allow for estimating the duration of an appointment, as something might be delayed, someone might drop out of line, or just come in for a prescription.

What if, instead of a color or number, they received a QR code that they scanned into an app? This would tell them how long they have to wait for their appointment. This way, they can go to a restaurant, the post office, or run other errands at hospital and nearby services. They know they won't miss the line, feel safer, and avoid wasting time on queue conflicts. Such apps already exist and are successfully used around the world.

Avoiding the hospital the smart way

Waiting times can also be reduced by minimizing hospital stays for chronically ill patients. They now have to report for unnecessary checkups and rehabilitation exercises, which they could do independently at home. Doctors can monitor their health and progress through apps. This is another step forward for technology in reducing waiting times.

Artificial intelligence takes a photo

Some examination-related tasks are particularly hazardous to humans. X-rays, for example, could be performed successfully by machines equipped with artificial intelligence. They could also immediately read the results, forwarding information to the attending physician. Systems like Google Lens already exist that allow users to obtain information about an object using a photo. Perhaps they will soon be used for diagnostics as well!

A comprehensive system

In the age of computerization, it's incomprehensible why doctors in various medical facilities create analog patient records, which they then photocopy test results into. What if there were a system that, with the patient's permission (perhaps after an electronic signature or scanning of an e-ID card?), could be accessed by doctors of various specialties to whom the patient goes? This would eliminate the need to provide a medical history each time (which would shorten the visit), eliminate unnecessary formalities, and in the event of an emergency and the inability to contact family, it would be easy to determine the patient's treatment and how to help them.