Troubleshooter to manage tensions between bureaucrats and medical staff at hospitals

It will be interesting to see how this works out. If they can measure any type of success then perhaps it should be rolled out to other States and Territories in Australia!

smh.com.au reports:

A troubleshooter will be appointed to every major hospital in NSW in an attempt to ease the deep-seated tensions between bureaucrats and the doctors, nurses and other health workers they manage.

The Premier of NSW, Nathan Rees, announced the government would adopt the vast majority of the 139 recommendations made by Peter Garling in his wide-ranging review of the public hospital system.

He said the position of executive medical director would be established in every area to "improve communication with staff and give staff more of a say on decision making at a local level."

Read rest of article.

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The Doctor Kiosk

This could provide a really positive outcome for those who don't like visiting doctors.

There is no suggestion that these kiosks replace the need to see a doctor but I think it could be an excellent first step for people who, for whatever reason are uncomfortable visiting a doctor.

I think this is an excellent use of technology and I look forward to seeing the outcomes of the proposed field tests.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) are developing a kiosk that can capture a patient's medical history, blood pressure, pulse, weight and other vital signs. It can also perform blood tests for glucose and cholesterol with results then sent to your provider. A message is sent back to you either by text or email advising the next course of action. Information might include whether prescribed medications are working for you right through to the requirement for further in depth exams if required.

Looking under the hood so to speak you will find the kiosk consists of a computer with peripherals including a blood-pressure cuff, a scale, a pulse oximeter to measure blood oxygen levels, and a peak-flow meter to determine whether someone's airways are constricted. Blood testing devices commonly used in emergency rooms that can measure cholesterol and glucose levels are also installed.

The kiosk is due to begin field testing in the UK in June and physicians hope it will one day bring relief to an overburdened healthcare system.

Read the full article at Technology Review

Thanks to carlosrizo for original twitter