A GAME-CHANGING system developed in Oxford to record hospital patients' vital signs using iPads could cut time nurses need on each person by up to 30 per cent, a research project has found.

The System for Electronic Notification and Documentation (SEND) involves using iPad tablets instead of traditional paper charts at the end of beds.

A study of three wards at the Churchill and Horton General Hospitals found the typical time to record vital signs on a chart was more than a minute quicker per patient.

It comes just after creators Oxford University and Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust signed a contract to deploy and commercialise SEND across the NHS.

Dr David Wong, a co-author and health lecturer at Leeds University, said: "This paper’s finding supports the message that we have been hearing from front-line staff.

"SEND facilitates fast, accurate recording of patient vital signs and frees up more time for clinical care, which we believe will ultimately lead to better outcomes."

The tablet system was introduced from 2014 and has now been fully rolled out at all of Oxfordshire's hospitals, with 400 tablets in use.

It links to a bar-coded wristband worn by the patient to identify them and displays vital signs such as heart rate and blood pressure so staff know how to treat them.

The study found the average time to record vital signs on a paper chart was 215 seconds, but this dropped to 150 seconds or two minutes and 30 seconds using SEND.

The system also means information about patients can be shared around the trust, saving crucial time previously spent looking for charts.

SEND is one of three products created in Oxford that will be tested in up to four more NHS trusts across the UK over the next 12 months by Drayson Technologies.

Professor Lionel Tarassenko, head of engineering science at Oxford University, said: "In Oxford, we can go all the way from laboratory prototypes to clinically-validated products.We have combined world-class engineering and clinical research with feedback from frontline NHS staff to create products that deliver real benefits to patients."

Oxford University Innovation, the research commercialisation arm of Oxford University, licensed the technologies to Drayson.

Head of life sciences Adam Stoten said: "Digital health has enormous potential to generate patient benefit and economic savings throughout the NHS.

"We have found a partner committed to providing the resources and expertise needed to support the use of these ground-breaking technologies across multiple NHS trusts."

The technology was devised, researched and funded through the NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, a collaboration between the trust and the Oxford University to fund medical research.