How the Internet of Things eases the burden of nursing

Although nurses are essential workers, hospitals generally lack the financial resources to improve these conditions. According to a hospital study by KPMG conducted in the summer of 2019, which looked at clinics in the southern German states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, six out of 10 hospitals reported financial losses compared to the previous year. This is not only a problem in the south of Germany, because according to a previous survey, the heads of one in four hospitals in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia also believe that if state funding does not increase then their clinic’s future existence will be endangered. According to a recent study by the University of Cologne, the coronavirus pandemic is increasing the shortcomings in nursing care: the procurement and consumption of protective equipment, compliance with hygiene measures and worrying about self-infection are currently increasing the burden.

In the short term, Federal Minister of Health, Jens Spahn, has decided on a number of measures to relieve the burden on nursing home staff, such as the suspension of the nursing TÜV until September 2020. With the so-called Care Staff Strengthening Act, the federal government wants to improve everyday life in outpatient and inpatient care, also in the long-term. In addition to financing additional training places, measures to reconcile family and career, and additional financial resources for small hospitals in rural areas, digitalization will be used to reduce the burden on nursing staff – especially in the area of nursing documentation. Since the law came into force on January 1, 2019, the federal government has provided funds of up to 30,000 euros per institution for digital or technical equipment.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a suitable technology for a cost-effective and fast digitalization of the day-to-day running of a hospital. This is because many solutions function via plug and play and have an independent power supply and connectivity. Such applications have already been successfully tested at the University Hospital of Mainz, for example. Together with experts from Deutsche Telekom, the hospital developed a smart solution for nursing documentation at the Healthcare Hackathon in July 2019.

The result: The IoT Service Button for nursing staff, which the University Hospital of Mainz has also successfully implemented. An example: If nurses want to use certain medical devices, one button is sufficient for ordering and documentation. For example, if a nurse needs a vacuum pump to support wound healing, one click is enough. The button automatically sends a signal to the IoT Cloud – Telekom’s Internet of Things platform. The hospital's materials warehouse then immediately receives an e-mail and delivers the pump as quickly as possible without contact. At the same time, the button sends a signal to hospital logistics.

This digitally documents that the pump is in use. When the treatment with the vacuum pump is finished, the nurse presses the button again. Hospital logistics receives a signal that the pump must be collected and cleaned and notes that the wound treatment with the pump is finished. Written documentation, faxes and telephone calls are no longer necessary and the medical equipment gets to where it is needed much faster. "Nurses save up to 20 minutes of time per procedure," says Henning Koch, Project Manager and Business Development Manager Digital Health at Deutsche Telekom.

The button not only lists the use of medical devices, but also facilitates any kind of ordering process. For example, when beds are to be cleaned, instruments sent for sterilization or rooms disinfected – especially important in the current time for nursing documentation. "I am pleased that innovative Internet of Things technologies are also in greater demand in the healthcare sector," says project manager Koch. This in turn reduces overtime and stress and ultimately also makes the nursing profession more attractive. The IoT Service Button, as well as other solutions from the Internet of Things, can be individually adapted to the various needs of organizations in the healthcare sector – hospitals, nursing and retirement homes can all use them.