By Lisa Collier Cool | Posted August 17 2010
The average emergency room visit in the US lasts four hours. One of the main reasons for long wait times is not having the right bed when it’s needed.
But today, I treated eight ER patients, moving them quickly from room to room to get the tests and procedures they needed, then discharged them—in just three minutes. No, I’m not a doctor or nurse. I was playing a very cool interactive online game called “Patient Shuffle” that’s part of the first episode of The GE Show, “Healthy Hospitals.”
The GE Show is new form of digital storytelling. It combines entertainment and interactivity—including the game and a poll to see how much you know about hospitals—with a behind-the-scenes look at the medical team of Glens Falls Hospital in upstate New York. (Some of their jobs and comments will surprise you).
The show highlights new technologies to make hospitals smarter, more efficient, and in better tune with patients’ needs. GE researchers are developing a real-time early warning system to inform staff about potential “hot spots” where patient beds may be limited, so critical needs can be addressed quickly, shortening wait time.
GE’s Guardian Angel uses special sensors to monitor a patient’s room and alert caregivers if certain safety procedures aren’t being followed. And to keep everyone’s medical bills down, a hospital can save over $750,000 a year—and trees—by switching from paper to electronic medical records. A nurse can save 1,283 hours per year by sending prescriptions to the pharmacy electronically. That means better care for your and your loved ones.
Not only will the “Patient Shuffle” game help appreciate the challenges staff face, but it’s fun. So far, the top score for hospital discharges is 22 in three minutes—with all of the patients satisfied. Can you beat the record?
CONNECT THE DOTS
How healthy are our hospitals? For a graphic look at 30 key measures of quality, go to GE’s interactive visualization. Centers for Disease Control conducted a national survey of emergency rooms, while the Commonwealth Fund has an international comparison of US healthcare with that of five developed nations. You’ll find more resources at The GE Show. And stay tuned for new episodes in the fall and winter about electric vehicles, air traffic control and the rail system.
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