• BEST PRACTICE

Real-Time QR-Codes make Real Difference

An Innovative System for eShiksha, eSahayog and eShasan

  • Objectives of the Practice:
    • Teaching –Learning:
    • Need-based knowledge acquisition by students with access to information anytime, anywhere.
    • Student Support:
    • To obtain student feedback and to address student suggestions/feedback/grievances quickly.
    • To make fee payments by students/parents hassle-free.
    • Hospital Support:
    • To obtain patient/attendant feedback particularly related to Discharge Against Medical Advice (DAMA)
    • To monitor the quality of services delivered to patients
    • To ease bill-payment by patients/attendants
    • Central Information Management System:
    • The steady transition towards paperless culture- Step towards ‘Go Green’.
  • The Context:

We being a health education institute, patients and students are two important stakeholders. BLDE(DU) strives to provide the best campus experience in terms of learning and accommodation for students and healthcare for patients.

    • Teaching –Learning:

Knowledge acquisition by students must be need-based without time lag. We wanted to create a teaching-learning environment where every student can access learning materials anywhere and anytime.

    • Student Support:

Student suggestions/feedback/grievances should be heard and effectively resolved. The age-old paper-pen method of feedback makes it difficult to keep track of all forms. Also, most of the time, these forms end up not reaching the person in charge and a time lag in response follows.

Manual fee-payment is time-consuming involving manual work. Hence there was a need to make this process time saving and hassle-free.

    • Hospital Support:

DAMA is a vexing problem. It is important to understand why the patient leaves against medical advice. It is crucial to have feedback from patients/attendants for early intervention and counseling.

We strongly believe in value-based care. Accordingly, we rely on patient feedback to improve our healthcare services, provide patients with the best experience, and for our steady growth.

To ease payments by patients/attendants.

    • Central Information Management System:

We deem it a responsibility to preserve and protect the environment. As a step towards ‘Go-Green’ embracing steady transformation towards paperless culture is crucial.

Smartphones are ubiquitous and the introduction of QR-codes has revolutionized the way consumers communicate and access information.  Hence the introduction of  QR-codes in Teaching-Learning was started in 2017 and steadily extended to cover Student-Support, Hospital-Support, and Central Information Management System and still continues.

  • The Practice:
    • Teaching – Learning:

Real-time Teaching-Learning with QR-Code as innovative pedagogy where students acquire knowledge and information when required just by scanning the QR-code.

QR enabled Museum: Museums in University are a rich source of knowledge. To make the museum accessible anytime and anywhere, museum specimens are QR-enabled. Students can access descriptions of specimens instantaneously by scanning a QR-Codeforming basis for self-directed learning in real-time.

QR enabled Library:

Library resources are QR-enabled to provide useful content to the students immediately without extra searches.

Digital Case Series: Questions regarding interesting/rare cases are linked to QR-codes, displayed in display signages. Students scan the code and answer the questions. Students giving correct responses received prizes.

SOPs of laboratory techniques and procedures are QR-enabled. Once the QR-code is scanned, the procedure appears immediately. The instrument trouble shooting and contact information is also incorporated.

    • Student Support:

Real-time feedback with QR-Code: Feedback forms are integrated with QR-codes placed at designated locations making them easily accessible. All that the student does is scan the QR-code, to access forms and give feedback, delivered in real-time to concerned authorities for immediate response and action. If an issue is not resolved within 72 hours, the same will be intimated to the Principal automatically for further action.

Real-time fee payment system: QR-code displayed at college/hospital/university offices has to be scanned using a smartphone to get direct access to payment-portal.

    • Hospital Support:

DAMA Feedback:

DAMA is a vexing problem enhancing the risk of morbidity and mortality among patients. It is important to review the reasons for DAMA for the patient’s benefit. QR-codes integrated with feedback-forms are at the patients/attendant’s disposal for their feedback.

Patient/Relative Feedback:

To monitor the quality of services provided to patients, feedback forms integrated with QR-codes are placed in hospital premises which can be accessed by patients/attendants.

Feedback will be delivered in real-time to concerned authorities for immediate response and action. If the issue not resolved within 72 hours, it will be automatically intimated to Medical Superintendent for further action.

Real-time payment system:

QR-code displayed at hospitals scanned using a smartphone to get direct access to payment-portal.

    • Central Information Management:

Registration for CME/Conference/Workshop, etc., organized in the institution has been made paperless using QR-code. The delegates can also give their feedback by simply scanning the QR-code to access feedback forms.

Faculty can upload in real-time details of research projects/awards/honors, achievements/presentations, and attendance at conference/CME/Workshops, and various FDPsby scanning QR-code.

Faculty and student ID cards are RFID and QR-enabled. This helps monitor students’ exit and entry to hostels, intimating concerned authorities and parents in case of deviations. Staff entry and exit from the campus also monitored. These ID cards also used for registration for conferences/CME/workshops organized in-house.

  • Evidence of Success:
    • Teaching-Learning:

It is with a twist of technology that has ignited an extra interest and curiosity among students. They can access information anywhere, anytime initiative towards self-directed learning. These activities also expose them to current technologies infusing creativity and integrative learning skills using machines with human professionals. When compared with the previous system wherein printout of the specimen’s description in the form of files or catalogs, this QR-system has eliminated the time wasted for finding the file, searching specimen number, and reading the description. The utility of QR-system is published in the article entitled “QR-enabled museum in your pocket” in an indexed journal.

    • Student Support:
      QR-based fee payment saves time and appreciated by students/parents 

Feedback from students reaches the concerned authorities in real-time and issues are quickly resolved.

    • Hospital Support:

A good number of feedback from patients/attendants received. The positive responses have motivated us, and critical comments helped to improve our quality and serve better.

Feedback from patients/attendants regarding DAMA helped understand reasons and advocate remedial measures.

    • Central Information management system:

It has significantly reduced the use of paper. Have helped with steady progress towards e-governance.

  • Problems and Resources Required:
    • Teaching-Learning:

A smartphone with a mobile app is a must for using this system.

QR-codes should be strategically on specimens with the minimal distortion which was meticulously achieved. The water and chemical splashes may alter QR-code quality which was avoided by sealing off codes with transparent tape.

    • STUDENT SUPPORT:

Some students are hard to turn up to scan QR-code and give feedback.

    • Hospital Support:

Patients/attendants not well versed with technology are apprehensive about this system. To help with this issue, human assistance is provided. Facilities for traditional and manual bill-payment continue to work. Since a good number of people opt for the QR-based bill-payment, long queues at cash counters and the waiting period are reduced.

    • Central Information Management System:

Being a health science institute, this system has to be tailored to the needs and requirements of a doctor, student, patient/attender. Accordingly, IT-department is headed by a Doctor who is well-versed with teaching hospital’s requirements resulting in the needs of faculty, patients/attendants, students/parents catered to near perfection.

VAYO UPCHAR

(GERIATRIC CLINIC: CARING FOR SECOND CHILDHOOD)

A Holistic & Integrated practice of Geriatric Medical Education & Geriatric Health Care

  • OBJECTIVES OF THE PRACTICE:
    1. To provide holistic & Integrated health care to the elderly.
    2. To orient and train students about geriatric health, geriatric diseases including lifestyle and geriatric care
    3. To promote research to understand the core issues and unmet needs of the elderly.
    4. To campaign against elder abuse.
  • THE CONTEXT:

With improvements in the quality of health care, longevity has improved across the globe, including India’s increasing number of elderly, predicted to treble by 2050. The existing health care system is not geared up to handle this ‘SILVER TSUNAMI‘. The health context of the elderly has remained a lesser priority both at the national and state level. Also, the current lifestyle has resulted in an upsurge in lifestyle diseases and mental health issues with devastating and debilitating effects on the life of the elderly. With the wake of the nuclear family concept, care of the elderly has suffered from old age homes the day’s order. Routine clinics cannot address multiple health issues of the elderly.

Geriatric medicine demands research and progress like any other discipline in the health care sector.

The need for trained geriatricians is also accordingly rising. Ironically, most medical schools lack specialized training of students in geriatrics.

Hence, a felt need to cater to specific health needs of the elderly and orient/train students about health, disease and care of the elderly was realized.

  • THE PRACTICE:

HOLISTIC CARE:

Shri B. M. Patil Medical College, Hospital and Research Centre, established ‘GERIATRIC CLINIC’ in 2007 with the theme “Successful aging,” dedicated to providing holistic care to senior citizens. It runs an exclusive clinic every Wednesday between 09.00 am to 05.00 pm in OPD Number 5, ground floor with a special counter at registration and drug store for the elderly. It is engaged in health, awareness, preventive, curative, academic, and research activities. Specialized care like orthopedics, ENT, ophthalmology, dermatology is made available under one roof for senior citizens’ convenience. Superspeciality services like neurology, dialysis, cardiac is also provided.

Dementia Clinic and Psychosocial Counselling:

To address the rising burden of memory issues in the elderly, our University started ‘DEMENTIA CLINIC’ under the geriatric clinic’s auspices in 2011 in collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry which also provides psychosocial counseling.

Immunization Clinic:

Elderly people frequently succumb to infectious diseases most of which are preventable yet preventive measures often remain neglected. Hence, geriatric clinic launched an exclusive Immunization Clinic for the elderly in 2019, the first of its kind in Karnataka and third in the country, a one-stop provider of all vaccines to senior citizens as per the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centre for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines.

Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation: Joint pain, generalized weakness, balance impairment, post-stroke paralysis are common among elderly. Our Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Center is well equipped to provide preventive and therapeutic services to improve quality of life among elderly including residential services for their convenience.

Yoga for healthy ageing: To help elderly to achieve healthy ageing, Center for Yoga and Exercise Sciences in collaboration with Morarji Desai Institute of Yoga, Ministry of AYUSH, GoI engages elderly in Yoga.

TRAINING AND EDUCATING UG/PG STUDENTS:

Value-added program on Basic Learning Course in Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology for first-year postgraduate students of Department of Medicine to train regarding the common health issues in elderly and best ways to approach. The total duration of the course 12 months (24 classes).UG students are introduced to concepts of geriatric medicine via theory, bedside clinics, and regular visits to old age homes to foster compassion and empathy towards elderly and sensitize them to the everyday challenges of elderly.

RESEARCH IN GERIATRIC MEDICINE:

Research to identify the core issues and unmet needs of the elderly, and to promote research aptitude among UG/PG students in geriatric medicine.

CAMPAIGN AGAINST ELDER ABUSE:

Workshops, awareness/guest talks on elder abuse organized.

OTHERS:

    • Free Consultation services: Geriatric clinic organizes regular training of newly recruited Government medical officers on geriatric medicine as part of National Program for Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE) at the District and National level, Advisory Member for various Senior Citizens Forums in Vijayapura District, has Health Helpline(8277315585, everyday between7.30am-8.30 am), offers consultation services to NPHCE, Tata Trust, BLDEA’s College of Nursing, Biogenesis, and Vijayapura District Administration, radio talks on health issues of elderly.
    • Social issues: Conducts” meet the caregivers”, a unique program wherein the caregivers meet and discuss challenges faced during the care of the elderly and ways to tackle them which gained wide popularity among caretakers. There is a growing tribe of senior citizens who pledge to donate their bodies. The clinic encourages and assists in body donation and eye donation.
    • A special collection of books on Yoga, Spirituality, Nutrition, and health in the local language for the elderly.
  • EVIDENCE OF SUCCESS:
    • The geriatric clinic has more than 1000 registered senior citizens utilizing various services. In recognition of the commendable services, catered by the geriatric clinic Government of Karnataka conferred the prestigious ‘STATE AWARD’in 2016. Also received several laurels from prestigious organizations like Geriatric Society of India, Influenza Society of India, Silver Innings, iCongo, Double Helical Health Magazine, Rotary International, Apollo Hospitals, etc.
    • Training and educating UG/PG students: The purpose of enhancing UG/PG students’ knowledge and competency in geriatric health care is achieved.
    • Research Output:
      • 65 publications in various Books, Journals, and Magazines
      • 6 Orations
      • 13book chapters and a book on geriatric medicine and gerontology.
      • Student research projects in geriatric medicine published in indexed journals and won awards.
      • Novel questionnaire to detect elder abuse developed, very well appreciated by clinicians.
      • 16 scientific research papers presented at International, National, and State level Conferences of Geriatric Society of India, Association of Physicians of India, and Indian Medical Association. 3 research papers presented at annual conferences of the British Society of Gerontology in Scotland, Wales, and Sweden.
    • Part of Regulatory Bodies: This is part of the committee for recommending immunization for older people to the Government of India.
    • State/National/International Conferences/CME/Workshops organized:
      • Hosted 2 State Conferences,3 workshops,1 CME on geriatric medicine and gerontology
      • Resource person -66 State, National, and International conferences.
    • Social Cause: Organized 16 awareness talks, 15 health and immunization camps for senior citizens in rural and slum areas.
    • The international days of importance like elder abuse awareness day, the international day for older persons, Alzheimer’s day observed.
  •  
  • PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED AND RESOURCES REQUIRED:

Geriatrics is not a lucrative branch. Hence deficiency of geriatricians, trained health workers, and skilled nursing workforce for elderly care is a major challenge.

Creating awareness and convincing the elderly to overcome social issues is a hurdle.

Most of the time, the elderly don’t have attendants for their care. Additionally, financial constraints pose a major hurdle, particularly for those lacking insurance coverage. In this context, the intervention by governmental and non-governmental organizations is crucial.

Transportation of the elderly to the hospital, particularly during emergencies, is a challenge. Hence, providing ambulance service exclusively for older people with trained staff for transportation could greatly help.