Stockport NHS Foundation Trust serves the Greater Manchester and High Peak area through Stepping Hill Hospital and 10 community locations. The hospital has around 6,300 staff and provides care to over 300,000 patients annually. Aiming to optimise patient outcomes and staff well-being, the Trust partnered with CDW to revolutionise its IT infrastructure.

In response to increasing demand and evolving healthcare needs, the Trust needed to implement and leverage a better technology environment to improve patient care and the work-life balance of their staff and clinicians.

The first step was to update the Trust’s outdated and unreliable network infrastructure. CDW implemented a state-of-the-art wireless network solution that covers all clinical areas and supports agile working for clinicians.

With a robust and reliable infrastructure in place, CDW deployed multiple technology solutions across the Trust that would help deliver better patient care. This included Zebra handheld mobile devices that would transform the blood traceability process within the Trust’s Blood Bank facility. This solution ensures end-to-end traceability of blood bag units, with the Zebra digital scanners tracking each unit’s journey from donation to administration.

Key Benefits

• Improved Efficiencies - The utilisation of Zebra handheld scanners has streamlined the blood tracking process, improving efficiencies. The digitalisation of data collection expedites the workflow, allowing clinicians at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust to focus more on patient care rather than manual record-keeping.
• Reduction of Human Errors - One of the most significant benefits is the reduction of human errors. The blood track solution’s precision in scanning and recording data minimises the risk of mistakes that can occur during manual entry. By automating the verification process, it ensures that each blood bag’s details are accurately captured, thereby safeguarding patient health.
• Enhanced Patient Safety - The blood track solution’s impact on patient safety is profound. It reinforces critical checks at the point of collection, verifying the blood bag number against the tag number. With automatic prompts and real-time validation, the system alerts clinicians if an incorrect unit is accessed, eliminating the possibility of administering the wrong blood type.
• Streamlined Traceability - A complete audit trail is established, providing transparent and quick traceability of blood bag units. This feature is invaluable in scenarios where swift responses are required, ensuring that the right blood reaches the right patient without delay.

The Trust has already realised the new solution’s capabilities in eliminating errors and reinforcing patient safety checks. The Zebra scanners have become an indispensable tool in maintaining the integrity of the blood supply chain, ensuring that each unit is tracked, traced, and transfused with maximum accuracy.

The adoption of Zebra’s handheld scanners is a testament to the blood bank unit’s commitment to embracing technology for the improvement of patient care. As a result, the Trust stands as an exemplar of safety and efficiency, setting a new standard for blood traceability in healthcare.

Raisa Zaman, Technical Head of Haematology & Blood Bank Manager at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, commented: “The new blood tracking technology solution has been revolutionary in patient safety. By significantly reducing human errors, it ensures a seamless audit trail for each blood bag unit, enhancing traceability and speed.”

Phillipa Winter, Chief Technologist, Health and Social Care at CDW, stated: “At CDW, we are immensely proud to collaborate with Zebra Technologies as a strategic partner on this project for Stockport NHS Foundation Trust. Our joint efforts have delivered a technology solution that not only enhances efficiencies and patient safety, but also sets a new benchmark in healthcare innovation. The successful blood tracking system implementation at the Trust is a great example of our commitment to delivering transformative technology solutions that make a real difference in the lives of patients and the daily operations of healthcare professionals.”

For more information on how Stockport NHS Foundation Trust is setting new standards in healthcare innovation, watch our case study at: news.uk.cdw.com/cdw-zebra-stockport-nhs-foundation-trust.

ABOUT CDW  

CDW Corporation (Nasdaq:CDW) is a leading multi-brand provider of information technology solutions to business, government, education and healthcare customers in the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. A Fortune 500 company and member of the S&P 500 Index, CDW was founded in 1984 and employs approximately 10,000 coworkers. For the year ended December 31, 2020, the company generated net sales of over $18 billion. For more information about CDW, please visit www.CDW.com.

ABOUT ZEBRA TECHNOLOGIES 
Zebra (NASDAQ: ZBRA) helps organizations monitor, anticipate, and accelerate workflows by empowering their frontline and ensuring that everyone and everything is visible, connected and fully optimized. Our award-winning portfolio spans software to innovations in robotics, machine vision, automation and digital decisioning, all backed by a +50-year legacy in scanning, track-and-trace and mobile computing solutions. With an ecosystem of 10,000 partners across more than 100 countries, Zebra’s customers include over 80% of the Fortune 500. Newsweek recently recognized Zebra as one of America’s Most Loved Workplaces and Greatest Workplaces for Diversity, and we are on Fast Company’s list of the Best Workplaces for Innovators. Learn more at www.zebra.com or sign up for news alerts. Follow Zebra’s Your Edge blog, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, and check out our Story Hub: Zebra Perspectives.