The Operating Room Dashboard

One of the delicate balances of modern technology is delivering all the relevant information in such a way that it can be taken in at a glance – akin to the car dashboard – while still concentrating on the mission-critical task at hand. Last week we covered the latest advances for the information-intensive battlefield and now we’re reporting on what seems like the opposite end of the spectrum – the Operating Room. The Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York has recently deployed LiveData's OR-Dashboard across its 21 new operating rooms. The new ORs incorporate state-of-the-art medical and information technology that visually integrates information from disparate sources, delivering a complete, real-time view of all relevant patient information on a large, flat panel display that is visible to the entire OR team.

There are many sources of patient information, with new data being generated all the time by diverse information systems, physiological monitors, and medical devices. LiveData works across all of these systems to capture all relevant patient information, and synthesize and present it to the OR team contextually and in a way that is instantly understood.

The LiveData OR-Dashboard is a key technology in MSKCC's "Wall of Knowledge," a new and innovative visual system bringing all video, image, and patient information together to enhance patient safety in the OR. The Wall of Knowledge comprises four large, wall-mounted displays. These include the OR-Dashboard screen, an adjacent display for high-resolution surgical video and laboratory images, and below these, two real-time PACS monitors for viewing X-Rays. Also included is a touch-screen control panel, providing an intuitive user-interface for all video, image, and OR environmental controls.

"Memorial Sloan-Kettering's top priority is to ensure patient safety while providing efficient, high-quality care," said Roger Wilson, MD, Chairman, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at MSKCC. "This integrated technology plays a major role in organizing and providing context for a complex array of information and images during surgery, and helps us accomplish that goal."

LiveData provided the technology necessary to visually integrate the Center's new operating rooms, displaying a complete picture of the patient and operation in one centralized location. By bringing all of this information together on a single, visual display, MSKCC expects to enhance patient safety and improve efficiency in the OR.

"Situational awareness is key to patient safety," said Aileen Killen, RN, director of Perioperative Nursing at MSKCC. "This technology seamlessly delivers vital data and trends to the patient care team so that everyone remains informed throughout the course of each surgery."

LiveData also developed additional behind the scenes capabilities, such as integrating video and other technologies that will be used for future playback for research, archiving and training functions.

Requirements from the clinical team were captured and delivered in an innovative and comprehensive solution, which has the flexibility to incorporate data and visual information from multiple vendors' patient information systems, medical devices and other departmental systems such as pathology. There is also the flexibility to add new devices as the need may arise.

"Through their dedication and remarkable vision, Memorial Sloan-Kettering is applying the LiveData technology in a way that advances the state of healthcare," said Jeff Robbins, president and CEO of LiveData. "We are very pleased to be working with them. The Wall of Knowledge is a significant contribution to the operating room, and is a pivotal implementation of LiveData's integration technology."

To develop the user interface, LiveData engaged user-centered technology and training systems designer Aptima which has a core strength in modelling complex environments to streamline workflow. Together, the companies created a highly intuitive, workflow-driven visual design, providing a common operational view for the entire perioperative team. The end result is improved team communication and situation awareness that leads to enhanced patient safety.