Projects

Real-time Wheelchair Location & Inventory System

Project Categories

Care Process & Redesign

Platform

National Healthcare Innovation and Productivity Medals

Cluster

National Healthcare Group

31 December 2022

Implement a real-time wheelchair location and inventory system (RTWLIS) to streamline wheelchair usage, reduce. RTWLIS significantly improved operational efficiency, saving time, reducing lost or misplaced wheelchairs, and increasing staff.

Year Submitted: 2022
Published Date: 31 December 2022

Tags: Care Process ＆ Redesign, Value Based Care, Build Environment, Facilities Management Improvements, Patient Satisfaction, Productivity, Time Saving

About this Content

Aims

Implement a real-time wheelchair location and inventory system (RTWLIS) to streamline wheelchair usage, reduce inefficiencies, and increase productivity for hospital staff.

Background

Patient greeters and portering teams faced difficulty locating wheelchairs, leading to inefficient workflows.

Methods

Deployed the ZigBee-based RTWLIS system, placing trackers on wheelchairs and installing routers throughout the hospital to form a network that tracks wheelchair locations.

Results

Reduced time to replenish wheelchair bays, saved 119,340 minutes of work (83 days), and increased wheelchair availability across the hospital.

Conclusion

RTWLIS significantly improved operational efficiency, saving time, reducing lost or misplaced wheelchairs, and increasing staff productivity.

Lessons Learnt

Engaging staff early and iterating on the technology helped overcome challenges during the deployment phase.

Keywords

Wheelchair Tracking, Real-Time Location System, Automation, Hospital Efficiency

Innovators' Details

Healthcare Cluster(s)	National Healthcare Group
Organization(s) Involved	Khoo Teck Puat Hospital
Platform(s)	National Healthcare Innovation and Productivity Medals
Healthcare Professional Group(s)	Healthcare Administration
Applicable Specialty or Discipline	Healthcare Administrators
Project Lead(s)	Stewart Tai
Project Member(s)	Donald Wai Tony Yang Raymond Chew Richard Jang Keegan Lim Syafiq Yeoh Edgina Winartio Kannan Shanmugapriyan Nur Nabila Binte Abdul Razak Koo Zheng Hua Alex Yew Wei Feng Liu Chun Yi

Connect with this contributor!

Stewart Tai - tai.stewart.yf@ktph.com.sg

Project Attachment

C_445_KTPH_NHIP_2022_Real_Time_Wheelchair_Location_and_Inventory_System_RTWLIS_in_KTPH.pdf