Revant becomes first rehabilitation centre to link measuring equipment directly to their electronic patient record via Cloverleaf

‘15 minutes saved per patient by linking medical devices with electronic patient records’

Revant Rehabilitation Centre has become the first rehabilitation centre in the Netherlands to directly register medical equipment measurements into their electronic patient record (EPR) HiX via Cloverleaf. This integration significantly reduces the number of tasks for Revant staff. ‘For ECGs, it saves 15 minutes per patient,’ lung specialist Karin Lammering gives as an example.

Lung specialist Karin Lammering happy with extra accuracy and time through linkage

Meanwhile, three of the seven intended medical devices at Revant Rehabilitation Centre’s Breda site have been linked. All are linked through Cloverleaf and Enovation supports Revant in this. Cloverleaf is a software solution used by many hospitals to allow all systems to ‘talk’ to each other. A kind of translation machine, which is the heart of the IT structure.

The benefits of the new links are great for the rehabilitation centre. Take, for example, ECG devices, which measure the functioning of patients’ hearts. Previously, a printout would come out of that after each measurement, which would be placed in a tray and later had to be scanned and incorporated into patient records. Until recently, there was an intermediate step to do this via a secure USB stick, but it was still time-consuming. Until now.

Fewer errors, more time

Karin Lammering is a pulmonary function analyst and is very happy with the direct link. ‘It is much less error-prone and really saves a lot of time. Consider this: first you had to enter patient data, take an ECG and the results came on an SD card. You had to take that out of the device, put it into a computer, then manually extract the information and put it into the EPR. Then you had to check that, delete the information from the SD card and then return to the ECG device. That was so cumbersome. I think this saves 15 minutes per patient.’

Even more advantages

Enovation account manager Hans Verweij congratulated Monique van Breemen (Revant) on connecting rehabilitation equipment.

The added value for care workers who use the equipment on a daily basis is evident. But Cloverleaf also has many advantages ‘under the hood’. Monique van Breemen, senior functional manager at Revant, had already experienced the benefits of Cloverleaf while working in a hospital. ‘At Revant, the vision emerged to directly link medical devices producing patient data to HiX, our EPR. This has become a procurement requirement for equipment. The list of equipment is extensive, so I immediately anticipated some challenges. We did have a linking platform, but Cloverleaf offers us more options. With Cloverleaf, you are more flexible within your application landscape, it speaks multiple ‘languages’, you can filter data more precisely and it improves monitoring. Moreover, our business intelligence team to create can now use accurate data directly for reports and dashboards, among other things.’

Step by step

Last year, the rehabilitation centre chose to start using Cloverleaf and since then, step by step, various types of rehabilitation equipment have been linked to the system. The first three links are now operational. These include devices that measures heart rhythm (ECG), lung function and respiratory gas. Links for blood gas analysis, ergometry bikes, blood pressure monitors and sleep monitoring equipment will follow in the near future.

A major undertaking

Establishing these links is a substantial task, as anyone familiar with the healthcare ICT sector can imagine. Van Breemen: ‘When we establish a new link, many parties are involved. The supplier of the device, our functional management team and ICT department at Revant, EPR hosting provider Intermax and the teams at Enovation and Unica. Extensive coordination is required between them. With the initial link, we encountered some delays, but each subsequent link has gone smoother.’

Successful collaboration

Revant Revalidatie has branches in Breda, Goes, Middelburg en Terneuzen.

Enovation is responsible for the installation and management of Cloverleaf. Van Breemen is highly satisfied with the collaboration. ‘I am very positive about the Enovation team. They are knowledgeable, responsive, respond quickly and think proactively, and deliver software that is both fast and functional. Naturally, issues may arise, but they are promptly addressed. You can tell that they have a lot of experience thanks to long-term employees. That speaks volumes about a company.’

Within Revant, these links are seamless improvements. The initial feedback from employees has been positive. ‘It’s also positive that colleagues at our other branches are already asking when their equipment will be linked. They’re requesting it themselves, which is the best compliment you can receive.’

More information

If you would like to learn more about the potential of Cloverleaf within the Enovation Platform, please feel free to contact us.