How SmartViz Helped Royal United Hospital Enhance Space Utilisation and Patient Experience

Discover how SmartViz helped Royal United Hospital (RUH) improve outpatient department operations, enhance patient experience and maximise space utilisation.

Challenge:

As part of a larger project to reconfigure the RUH estate, the hospital was looking for ways to optimise their outpatient departments. However, they faced several challenges, including:

• Lack of data and insights: The hospital lacked detailed data and insights on how their outpatient departments were being utilised, which made it difficult to optimise space utilisation and improve operational efficiency.

• Inefficient use of space: Inefficient utilisation of clinic rooms and waiting areas, patient profiles, service times and waiting times resulted in decreased operational efficiency and poor patient experience.

Solution:

SmartViz worked with RUH to implement a comprehensive solution to address these challenges. The solution included:

• Data gathering and analysis: We collected data from clinic timetables, anonymised appointment data, and a comprehensive survey of 14 outpatient departments capturing real-time utilisation of clinic rooms and waiting areas, patient profiles, service times and waiting times - during peak and off-peak periods. Read more about the occupancy monitoring techniques.

• Dynamic modelling and data visualisation: We constructed dynamic models for focal departments to test options for co-locating and optimised timetabling. Read more about the data visualisation techniques.

Results and Impact:

The implementation of SmartViz's solution resulted in several key improvements for RUH, including:

• Enhanced patient and staff experience: Improved utilisation of clinic rooms and waiting areas, streamlined service times and waiting times led to a better patient an staff experience.

• Improved operational efficiency: Optimised timetabling and co-location of services led to improved operational efficiency, freeing up staff time and reducing patient waiting times.

• Better space utilisation: SmartViz's data-driven approach enabled RUH to optimise their outpatient departments' space utilisation, reducing the need for additional facilities.

“The SmartViz platform provided the objective tool to confirm how underutilised our spaces were. The team helped us understand how the hospital works in practice, and saved over £3m by consolidating our spaces.

I believe this innovative work at the RUH Bath should pave the way for major capital projects and estate strategies across the NHS..”

— Howard Jones, Director of Estates, Royal United Hospital Bath

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