Selected Informatics Projects
Using Data and Digital Systems to Improve Emergency Department Operations
My work in clinical informatics developed from practical experience of trying to make Emergency Departments work better.
From 2010 to 2018, I led digital transformation within the Emergency Department at University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM). During this period, I also completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Medical Informatics, combining formal study with the practical implementation of digital systems in a large and complex emergency care environment.
The work covered real-time patient tracking, operational dashboards, clinical coding, automated discharge communication, business intelligence, medication management and the use of technology to reduce unnecessary work for clinical staff. I also spent four years contributing to theRoyal College of Emergency Medicine informatics committee and later supported the national implementation of the Emergency Care Data Set as an NHS Clinical Champion.
More recently, my informatics work has continued as part of my current NHS role.
Medical Informatics Officer - University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust
Since August 2024, I have served as Medical Informatics Officer for the Division of Medicine at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton (UHDB).
The role provides a formal clinical informatics link between frontline services and the organisation’s digital programme. I am currently involved in the implementation of the Nervecentre Electronic Patient Record (EPR) across UHDB and Chesterfield Royal Hospital.
My role includes representing clinical perspectives during implementation and helping ensure that digital workflows reflect the realities of patient care. It also involves supporting the practical adoption of new systems across clinical services and contributing clinical informatics expertise during a major organisational EPR programme.
This work builds on more than a decade of experience in emergency medicine informatics, from early operational systems and data projects through to large-scale EPR implementation and international informatics work.
- EPR implementation
- Clinical informatics
- Workflow design
- Clinician engagement
- Digital transformation
Emergency Department Electronic Clinical Information System
One of the major areas of work at UHNM was the implementation and continued development of the Emergency Department electronic clinical information system.
The system was not a fully paperless electronic patient record. Its main value was as a real-time operational dashboard, allowing staff to track patients through the department and giving clinical and management teams a much clearer view of activity and patient flow.
It also improved the quality and use of clinical information by supporting more accurate codingand the automatic generation of GP discharge letters. In 2011, these represented significant improvements in how information was captured, shared and used within the Emergency Department.
Although paper remained part of the clinical record, the system was a substantial step forward in the use of digital technology within the department. By making patient status and departmental activity visible in real time, it became an important tool for managing flow, identifying delays and supporting wider operational improvement.
- Real-time patient tracking
- Operational dashboards
- Clinical coding
- Automated discharge communication
- Patient flow
- Digital implementation
Performance Data and Operational Intelligence
A second strand of the work involved improving the way operational information was collected and used within the Emergency Department.
Rather than relying predominantly on retrospective manual reports, we increasingly automated the collection and presentation of performance data so that problems could be identified and acted on more quickly. This included examining the causes of delays and performance breaches, monitoring patient flow and using regular operational information to support departmental management.
At County Hospital, this data formed part of a wider operational approach that included regular departmental huddles, clear escalation processes and structured review of performance. Thepurpose was not simply to produce more data, but to turn routinely collected information into something that clinical and management teams could use to make decisions.
- Business intelligence
- Operational analytics
- Performance management
- Dashboards
- Data-driven improvement
Fingerprint-Controlled Medication Access System
Medication access provided a good example of how a relatively simple technological intervention could address an everyday operational problem.
In a busy Emergency Department, nurses were spending significant amounts of time locating keys and finding medication within locked cupboards. We introduced an Omnicell biometric medication cabinet, accessed by fingerprint and using guiding lights to direct staff to the required medication.
Rather than simply assuming that the new system was more efficient, we measured its effect before and after implementation.
The mean time required to obtain medication fell from 7.5 minutes to 1.1 minutes, a reduction of 6.4 minutes per medication. We then used dispensing activity and nursing salary data to calculate the financial value of the time released.
The system cost approximately £68,000 to implement, and the evaluation calculated that this cost was recovered through nursing-time savings within approximately six months. The work was subsequently presented at a scientific conference and demonstrated the importance of considering the value of staff time when evaluating healthcare technology.
- Workflow improvement
- Technology implementation
- Benefits realisation
- Financial evaluation
- Medication systems
Emergency Care Data Set (ECDS) Clinical Champion
My informatics work also extended beyond individual organisations. I served as a Clinical Champion for implementation of the Emergency Care Data Set (ECDS), supporting Emergency Departments across the West Midlands as part of the national implementation programme.
The role involved visiting departments, helping clinical teams understand and implement the new dataset, answering implementation questions and escalating problems that required resolution at programme level.This provided experience of digital and data implementation across multiple organisations, where local systems, workflows and organisational readiness could vary considerably.
The ECDS Programme Board subsequently recognised the contribution of this clinical support to implementation across the region.
- National data standards
- Implementation support
- Stakeholder engagement
- Clinical datasets
- Change management
Microsoft Teams as a Digital Operations Platform
My later work in the United Arab Emirates extended this approach beyond traditional clinical information systems.
I introduced and developed a Microsoft Teams-based collaboration environment for Emergency Department staff. Rather than using the platform simply for messaging or video meetings, it became a central location for operational communication, clinical guidance, educational resources, governance activity and departmental updates.
This became particularly valuable during the COVID-19 pandemic, when structured virtual briefings and digital communication allowed information to be distributed consistently across a large workforce while reducing unnecessary face-to-face meetings.
The project demonstrated that digital transformation does not always require new or expensive technology. Existing platforms can often be adapted effectively when they are designed around the needs of the people using them.
- Digital workplace
- Communication
- Knowledge management
- Staff engagement
- Implementation
Real-Time ED Overcrowding Dashboard
Emergency Department overcrowding is a complex operational problem, and effective management depends on understanding what is happening across the department in real time.
Working with technology partners in the UAE, I developed and implemented a real-time Emergency Department overcrowding dashboard that brought together operational information into a visual management tool.
The aim was to provide clinical and management teams with a rapid view of departmental pressure, patient flow and capacity, helping identify emerging problems and supporting earlier escalation and operational decision-making.The work was subsequently presented at an informatics conference.
- Healthcare analytics
- Dashboards
- Operational intelligence
- Data visualisation
- Overcrowding and patient flow
From Departmental Informatics to International Practice
These projects span different technologies, organisations and healthcare systems, but the approach has remained consistent:start with the clinical or operational problem, understand how people actually work, identify where information or technology can help, implement the change and evaluate whether it has made a meaningful difference.
Experience gained through practical digital transformation at UHNM, formal postgraduate training in medical informatics, Royal College work, national implementation activity and my current Medical Informatics Officer role has subsequently developed into international work through the International Federation for Emergency Medicine, including the establishment of the IFEM Informatics Special Interest Group, international education, conference activity and the development of informatics guidance.
