AUSTRALIA’S DIGITAL REVOLUTION BEGINS IN BRISBANE HOSPITAL

Brisbane’s Princess Alexandra Hospital has become Australia’s first public digital hospital, heralding a revolution in the way healthcare will be delivered in Queensland.

Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Cameron Dick today announced that implementation of the digital hospital project was successfully underway.

“This digital hospital project will transform healthcare delivery in Queensland and allow clinicians to focus on the patient, not paperwork,” he said.

“This means improved safety and quality of care for patients and faster treatment to get them home sooner.”

Deputy Premier and Member for South Brisbane Jackie Trad said the project also allowed for optimisation of world-class medical research through improved analysis of data and a reduction in inefficiency and wastage.

“This project is representative of what the Palaszczuk Government is all about – harnessing the potential of new technology and innovation to create a better Queensland,” she said.

Metro South Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive Dr Richard Ashby said Electronic Medical Records (EMR) were available instantly to healthcare staff across the hospital and, as other facilities follow suit, across Queensland.

“This project means the 2000 paper records that circulate in our hospital at any given time will now be replaced by real-time patient information being sent to a secure EMR,” he said.

“Given our proud history of clinical innovation, I’m delighted that the PA Hospital is leading this digital revolution,” he said.

Rollout of the project required training nearly 6000 staff and integrating more than 1600 new digital devices across the hospital, with extensive third-party support throughout implementation.

Care Delivery Lead Dr Clair Sullivan said hospital staff had enthusiastically risen to the challenge of going digital, with the benefits already starting to show.

“The scale of this change is unprecedented in an Australian hospital and by going digital, we will be able to provide patients with the best care possible,” she said.

The Queensland Government has invested $200 million over four years to establish the foundations of the digital hospital system, which will be implemented across the state.

Metro South Hospital and Health Service has contributed more than $30 million towards implementing the project at the Princess Alexandra Hospital.

The roll-out of the digital hospital system is part of the Palaszczuk Government’s $1.5 billion eHealth strategy, announced last year.