COVID-19 practices are constantly changing – this app helps emergency doctors cope

COVID-19 protocols are changing so fast that it’s hard for frontline staff to keep up.

Now a new content sharing app is helping to give emergency departments 24/7 access to the latest guidelines and information, in real time, from any web-enabled desktop or mobile device.

The cloud-based service, called Elemeno Express, is looking to raise awareness and gain expert partners on UpLink, the World Economic Forum's crowdsourcing platform for innovations.

The platform hopes to accelerate the delivery of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which include achieving good health and well-being for all, no poverty and zero hunger by 2030.

Information overload

“Traditional analog communication and training solutions are not working,” say the Elemeno Express creators on their UpLink page.

Methods of distributing information such as binders and posters can be hard to roll out and update, and it’s often difficult to track who’s seen them, let alone ask for feedback. Alongside this, the creators say, staff can find email overwhelming and struggle to separate what they need to know from the noise.

“They are left underprepared and stressed. As a result, staff do not consistently apply their department’s latest COVID best practices, compromising patient safety and placing staff at risk of unnecessary exposure,” they say.

The app has been developed by California-based software company Elemeno Health and the American College of Emergency Physicians, which represents 39,000 emergency physicians in the United States.

The creators are offering emergency departments anywhere a free version of Elemeno Express, which is already being used in more than 10 US states.

Department leaders can use the app to create, share and track bite-sized information including custom messaging, checklists and videos. And interactive content that includes feedback and recognition helps engage healthcare staff.

“Our premium service customers have leveraged Elemeno to keep their frontline teams (doctors, nurses, assistants) updated and aligned with the latest COVID practices, with both national and facility-specific guidelines,” the creators explain.

Innovation opportunities

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed unparalleled demands on modern healthcare systems – but also produced inspiring examples of innovation.

Two-thirds of healthcare leaders expect this period to be the most challenging in their careers, according to a poll by McKinsey & Company,

McKinsey also found a near-30% increase in the focus on innovation in the pharmaceuticals and medical products sector – while the other industries it polled had gone into reverse.

“The healthcare industry has produced inspiring examples of innovation in products, services, processes, and business and delivery models, often in partnership with other sectors,” McKinsey & Company say.

“For example, Sheba Medical Center in Israel is working with TytoCare to keep COVID-19 patients in their homes by supplying them with special stethoscopes that both listen to their hearts and transmit images of their lungs to a care team that can intervene as appropriate.

“In the United States, Zipline, which specializes in delivering medical supplies to remote areas, quickly formed a partnership with Novant Health in North Carolina to distribute supplies to hospitals via drones.”