Inaugural 2019 digital health award winners announced

A potentially lifesaving tool to detect blood infections was among the projects commended at the inaugural Digital Health Solutions (DHS) internal quality awards held recently.

Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) chief digital health officer Barry Mather said it was an opportunity for staff to showcase some of the initiatives that have been delivered in partnership with the clinical and corporate areas of WSLHD.

“These awards were a precursor to the district’s red carpet gala evening of the Quality Awards held in September,” Barry said.

“There were five outstanding nominations with the panel having a difficult task of selecting the winner: ‘Digital Operating Room’ – a partnership between the Division of Surgery and Anaesthetics for Blacktown and Mount Druitt hospitals and the Blacktown and Mount Druitt Expansion Project.

The Digital Operating Room (DOR) is a first for NSW Health, integrating surgical images and videos with the electronic Medical Record (eMR). 

“This project demonstrates the strong working relationships DHS has with a broad section of WSLHD staff. It required the close collaboration of 45 people across Mount Druitt, Blacktown and DHS to implement this important initiative.”

“The implementation of this project was a massive effort and is a credit to Asher Allhassid, Chris Keller and everyone involved. You should be proud of this success that is gaining interest from across the state.”

Second prize was awarded to ‘First Warning: an adult sepsis alert system for ED’, submitted by WSLHD chief medical information officer Associate Professor Naren Gunja.

“Congratulations to Naren and his team for this Australian-first initiative,” Barry said.

“This project detects sepsis through an early warning alert system developed in the eMR – a potential lifesaving initiative!”

For information or for staff to enter the 2019 WSLHD Quality Awards, visit: http://wslhdintranet.wsahs.nsw.gov.au/Clinical-Governance/awards