April/May 2008

East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust has been rolling out a mobile data system to enhance the response of paramedics when they reach patients. It features Panasonic CF-18 rugged handheld computers and Pentax PocketJet 3 thermal printers from GFI Mobile, suported by the Lifenet EMS package from Medusa.

The exercise forms part of the National Programme for IT - a ten-year £7.2 billion programme aimed at bringing modern computer systems into the NHS in order to transform patient care and services.

Paramedics can tap data into the ruggedised computer at the patient's side. Once docked back in the vehicle, the information is transmitted to the accident and emergency department via GPRS, and is already accessible via a Web browser interface when the patient arrives.

Ian Arbuthnot, IT Manager at the organisation's East Anglian Ambulances division, says that mobile printers form an important component of the system. The EMS package holds a growing set of medical care literature that can be used by patients, as well as key forms and other material, and it was considered important to make it possible to print this out in the vehicle if necessary.

'We eventually determined thermal printing was the best basic technology for us, but then we struggled to find the right supplier that could meet all of our specialist needs.' However, he says RGI Mobile came good, and was able to act as 'a true partner' in the project.

Seventy-five vehicles have been equipped with the system so far, and the figure is set to grow to 300 by the end of the year.