Andrew Raynes, IT Programme Director IM & T Data Centre Queens Hospital Barking Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust

2. ‘’Implementing GS1 Through a
Health Records Tracking Solution
at Barking, Havering & Redbridge
University NHS Trust’’
Part of our ‘’Digital by design’’ programme
Andrew Raynes
IT Programme Director, BHRUT
FIND-IT

3. WHAT IS FIND-IT?
• Our project to implement RFID barcodes and tags using GS1 GLN standards to
track Health Records at BHRUT
• We named the Project FIND-IT because of the obvious challenges!

4. BEFORE AND AFTER

5. WHAT PROBLEMS WERE WE TRYING TO SOLVE?
• CQC report which challenged our health records management
• The labour-intensive traditional health records library model
• Limited understanding of the whereabouts of records
• Poor and time intensive use of PAS Tracker (Medway)
• Complex flows of health records meaning 40% out of circulation at any one time
• Up to 10% of records not being available at clinics = Cancelled clinics
Combined together this resulted in:
– Notes difficult to find; clinicians don’t have the information they need, large
numbers of temporary notes
– Poor staff morale within the service, frustrated clinicians and patients
– Inefficient ‘sticking plasters’ with a heavy financial implication
– CQC inspection looming

6. IMPLEMENTING “FIND-IT”
• UtilisingiFIT from 6PM
• 5 Month project went ‘live’ on 28 November 2015
• Not just a superficial ‘add-on’ of technology
• Complete process change in the way we manage health records:
– Radical change in our filing model with supporting technology
– Change from terminal digit to location based filing. 600,000 records barcoded
– Staff can quickly track using iFIT software and GS1 barcodes for locations and
tracking management of health records
– Reduces the amount of time records spend out of the main file
– RFID technology including GS1 certified GDTI tagging of casenotes, mounted
readers and handheld scanners will track and locate health records around the
building

7. WHAT WILL IT ACHIEVE?
• Focused on main health record and maternity records
• More health records should be in file, (and we should know where they are if they
aren’t!)
• Reduces the time taken to pull, track and find records
• Shift to location based filing means records do not need to be sorted prior to filing
• The overall process will be streamlined allowing us to release resources
• GS1 compliance utilising GLN, GDTI, GRAI, GSRN and SSCC identification keys and
contribution to our IG toolkit
• Notes available WHEN AND WHERE they are needed

8. HOW DOES TAGGING WORK?
Readers are placed at key locations around the hospital and track records
using GS1 GLNs showing direction of travel as the system is updated with
tag movement.

9. WHO HAVE BEEN AFFECTED?
• Staff: Health record handlers affected as searching becomes more
efficient
• Patients: The RFID iTracking solution is a contingency should a health
record become lost and not be a replacement for day to day tracking
• Consultations with staff in their areas will maximise the impact of
FIND-IT

10. KEY BENEFITS
• Circa 135,000 records are barcoded and have RFID tags, enabling better
intelligence of location
• Record filing speed is now 85 per hour compared to pre-iFIT 35 per hour
• The location based filing system is much quicker:
– Pre-iFIT, using the manual process (4+ staff) took as many as 5 days to file
circa 2000 records
– Day 1 post go-live iFIT enabled 3 members of staff in health records to file
circa 2000 records in a single day
• There is improved user satisfaction with the majority of users preferring the
system to Medway
• Infrastructure is now in place which supports all 7 GS1 Identification Keys for
compliance and provides capability of tagging other trust assets
• Cash releasing savings achieved in phases

12. CONCLUSION
Good overall
• Did we achieve what we set out to do? YES and ongoing
• Go-Live was a success
• Some benefits realised – we have oversight of our records!
• Local and national user groups
• Appetite to roll out wider use of the tagging function
GS1 Specific Issues
• GS1 prefix meant size of barcodes changed. We had to increase the font size used on
labels in order for barcode scanners to read effectively
• BHRUT’s GS1 tags must be custom printed, increasing lead time to procure stock
• As a PFI need to join up the dots with FM, internal suppliers and Trust Management
Issues remaining
• Initial increase of temporary notes
• Over-productivity in records
• Staff not following business processes (Pull lists, Fulfilling Requests)
• Reporting
• Need to work on our EDM

13. THANK YOU
Andrew Raynes
IT Programme Director
IM & T Data Centre
Queens Hospital
Barking Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust
M: 07581 070197