INDUSTRY WATCH

Enhanced connectivity can lead to better quality and more flexible patient care , improved staff wellbeing and the potential delivery of a wider range of healthcare services by NHS providers .

Hybrid Connex , from UK emergency services connectivity specialist and systems integrator Excelerate Technology , was developed through a € 5.7m European Space Agency-funded research and development programme featuring the latest technology that goes beyond 4G limitations and into satellite territory , providing robust connectivity for ambulance crews and vehicles in areas where traditional cellular connectivity has been extremely challenged or impossible to achieve . It is also now being used in hospital emergency departments to bolster local connectivity .

The results of the pilot are particularly positive at a time when there is a lack of clarity about when the long-awaited Emergency Services Network ( ESN ) will come to fruition . The tangential Hybrid Connex technology can further support clinical connectivity within the UK ambulance sector since ESN is based solely on 4G technology , meaning the emergency services can benefit from the latest technology today rather than in the future .

• Increase the range of point-of-contact diagnostic services and tests that ambulance crews can carry out on-the-spot , without taking patients to hospital

• Be better prepared and able to take advantage of developments in telemedicine and video technology

• Ensure that crews can quickly and easily access immediate clinical information through electronic patient records

• Enable crews to remain in constant contact with specialists about patients and their conditions while travelling to receiving hospitals

• Enable crews to locate patients faster in areas where connectivity is compromised

• Help crews find key information about local health and social care services at their fingertips , enabling them to signpost patients to more appropriate , alternative sources of health and care

• Help fleet managers and financial managers within ambulance services handle the often-complex commercial aspects of connectivity – such as billing – in a much more efficient way

Bethan Evans , Chief Operating Officer at Excelerate , said : “ The Hybrid Connex technology bonds clever software , cutting-edge hardware and cellular and satellite services into one package combining seamless 4G , 5G and satellite connections that ensure ambulance crews get a fast , resilient connectivity solution and are seldom offline . The hardware is unobtrusive and the technical fit-out can be done in a day , meaning the vehicle doesn ’ t need to be off-line for long .

The trial at EEAST enabled paramedic crews to achieve almost permanent connectivity in areas where they previously had little or no Internet connectivity at all . During the pilot , cellular connection was utilised in 88 % of jobs attended in areas where previously the signal would not have been good enough to achieve a stable connection .

“ Patients and staff are the ones who really benefit when strong connectivity enables better clinical technology at the frontline , with new ways of working too . Importantly we also started to see how this technology can support reductions in unnecessary conveyance to hospitals , something which is a key NHS priority .”

Connection availability was 93 % during all jobs carried out in low or no coverage areas throughout the pilot and satellite was utilised in 47 % of jobs in low or no coverage areas , which many times was bonded with the cellular to provide a faster Internet connection for crews on board .

Complementing the next phase of the Ambulance Radio Programme ( ARP ) rollout ( part of the ESN ) this advanced level of permanent connectivity will :

• Open the door to new patient care pathways , taking advantage of digital advances

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