IT System for Hospital Care Processes

An integrated information technology (IT) system is designed to structure and computerize the entire patient care process in a hospital from the first consultation to the end of treatment.

The software offers extensive functions, from admittance to patient dismissal, including the emergency department, the intensive care unit, anesthesia, medical records, nursing department, and billing. Called Matrix Box, the software was developed by Yuse (Leuven, Belgium). Repetitive clinical pathways are entered into the program only once, after which all departments can follow up the multidisciplinary care program. This pathway determines the process and, as such, directs the sequence of the care process.

Yuse has researched the impact of the system on quality, efficiency, and improvement of working conditions in 12 departments in more than 10 hospitals in Belgium. The first phase was focused on the emergency department, operating room, and intensive care unit. The results showed that if all Belgian hospitals used the Matrix Box they would realize annual savings of more than one billion euros because of gains in quality and efficiency. Quality would be improved by an average of 39%. Aiding Yuse in its research program was a team from the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School.

"Up to now, a number of so-called island systems have already been implemented. These are separate programs, which are rarely ever compatible with one another,” noted Jo Vandebergh, CEO of Yuse. "Besides the traditional problems such as different technologies, links, and security of patient data, this approach is a dead-
end street, since it is completely at odds with the patient's clinical pathway.”

She added, "The only solution is hospital-wide, integrated software where the main focus is on the patient.”




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