Upgrading Pneumatic Tube Station Wireless Arrival Alarm for Discharge Lounge
Care Process & Redesign
Yishun Health One Improvement Festival
National Healthcare Group
13 October 2025
To develop a more cost-effective solution for discharge lounge to receive discharge documents promptly without relocating. The successful implementation of this wireless canister arrival alarm system has proven to be a cost-effective and sustainable.
Year Submitted: 2025
Published Date: 13 October 2025
Tags: Care Process ＆ Redesign, Cost Saving, Workflow Redesign, Time Saving, Quality Improvement, Productivity
About this Content
Aims
To develop a more cost-effective solution for discharge lounge to receive discharge documents promptly without relocating the Pneumatic Tube Station (PTS).
Background
The discharge lounge does not have a PTS, leading to inefficiencies in the delivery of discharge documents to the patients before discharge. Relocating the PTS from the patient service centre was deemed too costly, and the downtime during installation works made it impractical.
Methods
A wireless canister arrival alarm system was made by repurposing old Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) kitchen conveyer parts and a modified wireless home doorbell system. A sensor connected to the doorbell transmitter is attached to the side of a cushioned basket and placed below the PTS system in the patient service centre. The doorbell receiver is then placed at the discharge lounge reception and will alert staff when the sensor senses the canister in the cushioned basket.
Results
Discharge lounge staff saved an average of 15 mins per patient without a need to manually retrieve documents from wards. The lounge received an average of 1800 patients per year (150 patients per month) with an equivalent of 450 hours savings per year. The time savings has increased operational efficiency and patient engagements. This implementation has had many positive outcomes such as improved efficiency and cost savings. Compared to the original proposal of relocating the PTS, which was estimated to have cost $4000, this canister arrival alarm system costs only $26.90.
Conclusion
The successful implementation of this wireless canister arrival alarm system has proven to be a cost-effective and sustainable solution in addressing the lack of a PTS in the discharge lounge.
Lessons Learnt
Innovative, cost-effective solutions and the value of utilizing existing resources creatively are crucial.
Additional Information
This project exemplifies YH’s Onward 2026 values through operational resilience. By devising an innovative solution spearheaded by in-house FM staff, we avoided incurring additional costs and service disruptions. The solution ensured the timely delivery of discharge documents, providing a seamless discharge process for patients while significantly enhancing the productivity of discharge lounge.
Keywords
Pneumatic Tube Station, Wireless Alarm, Discharge Lounge, Cost-Effective, Operational Efficiency
Innovators' Details
Innovators' Details
Healthcare Cluster(s) | National Healthcare Group |
Organization(s) Involved | Khoo Teck Puat Hospital |
Platform(s) | Yishun Health One Improvement Festival |
Healthcare Professional Group(s) | Healthcare Administration |
Applicable Specialty or Discipline | Healthcare Administrators |
Project Lead(s) | Balasubramaniyan Murali |
Project Member(s) | Lee Han Xiang |
Connect with this contributor!
KTPH & YCH Innovation & Improvement (I&I) Office - i-i@ktph.com.sg
Project Attachment
791_KTPH_OIF 2025_Upgrading_Pneumatic_Tube_Station_Wireless_Arrival_Alarm.pdf