Staff working in bank arrangements are a clear source of additional capacity for the NHS during the COVID crisis. There is a very specific need for additional staff to manage the transfer of patients between Intensive Treatment Units (ITUs).
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the need for patient transfer is increased because many of these patients will go on to require ITU support. To optimise patient care, distribute pressure and better match patients to clinical services, both COVID-positive and COVID-negative patients need to be transferred between ITUs and accompanied by at least two suitably trained healthcare professionals. The coordination of these transfers is complicated. Critical Care Networks (CCNs) are managing logistics, but are struggling with the additional admin burden as demand increases.
Patchwork is a software solution for managing temporary staffing within NHS organisations. Patchwork is working with North West London Critical Care Network (NWL-CCN) to deliver an ITU patient transfer bank to support onboarding, logistical management and payroll in a scalable manner. This is an innovative application of our technology for an urgent need, but the product is not optimised for this use case.
This project aims to expand the coverage of our solution across London and enhance our software to create a London-wide ITU transfer bank. This would increase the pool of available clinicians and facilitate transfers between networks, which would further improve efficiency and patient safety during the ongoing crisis. The project would provide valuable infrastructure for managing ITU transfers that would prepare the healthcare system for future outbreaks.