Yle, which is Finland's national public broadcasting company, referred today to The Hospital District of South Ostrobothnia's EPSHP Hupulaanen mobile app, which is powered by Buddy Healthcare. Yle was referring to an article from a local newspaper, Ilkka, in Seinäjoki. We have summarized today's news below.
The Hospital District of South Ostrobothnia started digitizing surgery patients care pathways in autumn 2019. Currently, the hospital's care coordination platform has a couple of care paths, such as joint replacement and pediatric ear tube procedures.
Clinical nurse specialist Maija Kallio-Kujala from The Hospital District of South Ostrobothnia has stated that the goal is to develop the patient's care coordination system based on patient experiences. Both Kallio-Kujala and her colleague, head nurse Elina Kalliovalkama believe that using a mobile app with patient guidance belongs to today's digital era.
Kallio-Kujala described that the EPSHP Hupulaanen app is like a friend that helps to navigate through the surgery process. The app supports and creates a feeling of safety for the patient.
How does the digital patient guidance process work?
When the hospital has made a decision to proceed with surgery, and the patient has logged into the mobile app for the first time, he is able to start familiarizing himself with the materials inside the app. All information has been scheduled to arrive at the right time to the patient's app. EPSHP Hupulaanen helps patients with the surgery preparation, gives information on the procedure and support also in postoperative care.
Kalliovalkama described that the joint replacement patient's surgical pathway is long, which has many steps. When guiding the pediatric patients, the app contains stories and images that help the parents to prepare their child for the surgery. A child preparing for surgery can see beforehand to what kind of hospital he or she will be arriving.
The mobile app is sending smart reminders to the patients. For example, patients who will be attending cataract surgery will be reminded when exactly to use eye drops after the surgery. The app also collects all scheduled meetings in one place, and has important contact details to the hospital. Chat services enable patients to send messages to the hospital.
Kallio-Kujala has been surprised by how well orthopedic joint replacement patients have adopted the app. She was expecting that pediatric patients' parents would have adapted the use of the app easier than orthopedic patients.
Meanwhile, the patients are using the app; the hospital can monitor the patients remotely. The hospital care personnel can see if patients have acknowledged that they have, for example, read instructions or information packages.
Kalliovalkama has stated that the long-term goal would be a situation where 70-80% of the patients would go through the digital care pathway and use the app.
Do you want to watch the Yle news clip? click here and scroll to 2:14:40.
Yle morning news represented the Hospital District of South Ostrobothnia's EPSHP Hupulaanen mobile app. The app has been created in collaboration with Buddy Healthcare.
