Nurses care for new IT

The mobile clinical assistant could revolutionise patient care by decreasing administrative errors and freeing up nurses

MCA's could help nurses monitor patients

One in three NHS trusts are running trials of a new type of mobile clinical assistant (MCA) designed to help nurses work more efficiently and interface better with electronic patient records.

The Panasonic Toughbook device ­ a laptop with a touch-screen but no keyboard ­ has been tested in 57 out of 173 hospital trusts in England, and meets approved NHS specifications alongside similar products from Motion Computing and Philips.

Nurses found that MCAs have revolutionised their work, according to Barbara Stuttle, national clinical lead for nursing at NHS Connecting for Health.

“Trials were carried out in a hospital in Portsmouth and the staff did not want to give them back,” she said.

Tests showed that MCA devices reduced administrative errors and freed up nurses, allowing them to spend more time on patient care. The computers also make life easier for clinicians, according to Mike Bainbridge, clinical architect at NHS Connecting for Health.

“From a clinician’s point of view, allowing access to an online, up-to-date record for you, the patient, enables them to be better, more reactive, and more responsive,” he said.