PAPER medical charts at the John Radcliffe Hospital are to be replaced with wireless tablets to allow doctors to easily identify at risk patients.

Oxford University Hospitals Foundation Trust, which runs the JR, began replacing the paper charts used to monitor patients’ vital signs with wireless tablet computers last week.

Staff will be able to input patients’ vital signs such as heart rate, oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, temperature and blood pressure into the tablet instead of using paper charts.

The previous “track and flow” system meant staff had to take down readings then calculate if their condition had worsened or improved.

Nurses will also be able to record their concerns about whether a patient is vomiting or if there has been a colour change to their complexion.

Staff nurse Tilly Lightfoot welcomed the new system and said the new tablets gave doctors and nurses more time to care for patients instead of calculating track and flow readings.

She added: “It is a lot more effective because it works out your track and trigger score immediately so you can see straight away what it is rather than having to work it out.”

The John Radcliffe is the last hospital in the trust to receive the System for Electronic Notification and Documentation (SEND) project, which has been rolled out at the Churchill and Horton hospitals and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre.

The 300 Dell tablets cost a a of £145,440.

Intensive care consultant Dr Peter Watkinson, who is leading the programme, said: “We are delighted to be rolling out SEND at the trust’s largest hospital and look forward to seeing the benefits.

“Harnessing the advances in digital technology that have benefited societies the world over has been a key priority for research in Oxford and we look forward to bringing this system to more patients.”

Since being introduced last year more than two million vital signs have been recorded for about 12,000 patients using 140 tablets.

When it is fully introduced to the John Radcliffe by May next year, the number of tablets will more than double to 300 across the trust, with six on every ward, at a cost of £145,440.

The tablet is linked to a patient barcode wristband so that it brings up the right vital signs.

It not only means that doctors and nurses can see clearly from the display if a patient’s condition has deteriorated, but allows information to be shared around the whole trust.

Dr Louise Channon was introduced to the new system this week and said it was straightforward and easy to use.

She added: “It is good that you can look at observation trends from a distance in a clear format, which means you can keep a closer eye on your patients if you are physically unable to be on the ward at that specific moment in time.”

The system has been developed through the NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, a collaboration between the trust and Oxford University.