Chief nursing informatics officer at Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust, Kevin Percival, sees the emerging field of nursing informatics as “fundamental to the enhancing of patient experience”. 

His role is to provide leadership for digital transformation across the trust on behalf of nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals (AHPs). 

One of Percival’s main inspirations is exploring how technology can be used to support making staff’s lives easier so they can in turn provide better patient care.  

“I could immediately see the power of having technology that would support the delivery of not only nursing but overall patient care,” Percival explains. “My true passion is for the use of the data and information both at the bedside and in planning for the delivery of upcoming care and treatment.”

Human factors

Percival is a great believer that nursing staff should be involved throughout the entire lifecycle of the technology, from inception through to optimisation.

“Through my time as a nurse, I’ve been on the receiving end of healthcare technologies being introduced and promises being made by sales and technologists who don’t completely understand how nurses work,” says Percival.  “They think they’re bringing technology that answers a real-world problem when in actual fact, it ends up creating a brand-new problem that needs to be overcome by nurses.”

According to Percival, fully understanding the roles that nursing staff undertake requires a cadre of colleagues that can speak the same language as the nursing body, as well as the technologies.

“Looking at it through the eyes and lens of the nurse means that the technology is introduced for the right reasons and from the perspective of the end user and the day-to-day problems they’re trying to solve in the delivery of care and treatment,” he adds.

Another issue in the delivery of digital transformation is focusing too much on the system and not spending time on the people and the processes, which includes the cultural change and leadership. 

“The implementation of large complex digital transformation is extremely risky and requires clear leadership and drive that need to start at the top of the organisation that is able to provide clear vision and leadership with the right level of protection,” continues Percival. “Without this, the wider organisation doesn’t feel supported and empowered to lead and drive through the digital transformation.”

Customer experience 

Percival will be taking part at the panel discussion at HIMSS22 APAC Health Conference & Exhibition on Care isn’t What it Used to be: The Need to Elevate the Customer Experience. One of the topics he will address is the impact of the shift to consumerisation in healthcare.

“This change in culture has resulted in individuals feeling empowered, but with a sense of accountability for what happens and the outcome,” he says. “I will reflect on how if you elevate the customer experience and take away the stresses associated with the logistics of providing the service, the consumer will focus on what is important - which is contact with clinicians.”  

Also, he will be emphasising the importance of inclusivity in digital transformation both for the workforce and for patients and carers.

“Inclusivity is the cornerstone to ensuring the delivery of a universal healthcare system to ensure there is not a digital divide and individuals don’t find themselves digitally excluded, as then they become digitally disadvantaged and have their access to healthcare services limited,” he argues. 

However, Percival also warns against the risk of neglecting innovation and changes to the delivery of services because of a fear of excluding some groups. 

“It’s imperative that one size does not fit all patient groups, but also clinical scenarios and pathways,” Percival insists.

For example, virtual care through the delivery of patient monitoring through apps and wearables, can benefit clinicians and patients by allowing long-term patient groups to download or send their results to clinicians- reducing the need for as frequent follow-ups either face-to-face or video consultations. This releases time for clinicians to deal with greater need populations, such as those that are not digitally enabled or who require more intensive healthcare. 

“This means that those that are digitally enabled improve the outcomes for those that are not, by freeing up services for those that need,” concludes Percival. 

HIMSS22 APAC is taking place in Bali 26-29 September 2022. See here to find out more.