1/15/2010 11:34:00 AM Health: KEMH update Hospital boss's bid to bring U.S. surgeons to island BHB chief battling to reduce number of patients forced to go overseas by improving standards
* Photo by Sirkka Huish. Plans: David Hill, CEO of the Bermuda Hospitals Board, is in talks with partner hospitals to bring U.S. surgeons to Bermuda to carry out minor procedures.
Agenda for change
* Modernising facilities
* Improving access to care
* Technology and equipment
* Service excellence
* Promoting Bermudians as healthcare professionals.
More doctors should visit Bermuda to save patients the "cost and inconvenience" of travelling to the U.S.
This is the view of David Hill, CEO of the Bermuda Hospitals Board, who is campaigning for more on-island services.
He is in discussions with overseas partnership hospitals to see if more surgery can be carried out at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.
Mr. Hill wants "as many surgeons as feasibly possible" to visit the island for a few days at a time and carry out minor surgery.
Mr. Hill said: "Doctors can come to us rather than us going to them. We want more on-island services. We want to serve the community.
Quality
"If we can get the right staff with the right experience we can deliver the international quality right here. If it would be sub-standard to do something here, we wouldn't do it."
KEMH's main partners in the U.S. include the Lahey Clinic in Massachusetts, Johns Hopkins in Baltimore and Massachusetts General.
Mr. Hill describes the partnerships as "an international who's who of hospitals".
He added: "Patients don't know what can and cannot be done on-island as they are so used to travelling overseas. They spend too much time going off the island. In lots of situations it would be less costly if the doctors came to them.
"It's a delicate balance and we are now slowly trying to get it right." The introduction of the RP-7 robot to KEMH provides access to overseas consultants without travel.
The RP-7 is a physical robot and a web-based management console.
Consultants in the U.S. can examine a patient using the device's camera and talk to the patient and family members through the video monitor.
Doctors on both sides of the Atlantic can use the robot to discuss a patient's condition. It is moved from ward to ward and used on a daily basis.
Mr. Hill said: "We are all for better interaction and the robot can be used clinically and socially. It can be used to make an informed medical decision or for a follow-up consultation.
"It's surreal to see at first but after a while it seems like a normal consultation.
"Being able to talk directly to the surgeon makes the patient more informed. The robot can access 90 specialists without the patients having to leave Bermuda."
KEMH has acquired a new fleet of ambulances and PACS (picture archiving and communication system) for a filmless x-ray department.
Later this year, it will invest in a 64-slice scanner for cardiac diagnostics.
Mr. Hill also aims to reduce waiting times in the emergency ward.
Improvements
The opening of the Lamb Foggo Urgent Care Centre in St. David's has "helped dramatically" as the average wait time is now two-and-a-half to three hours.
Mr. Hill said: "Improvements have been made and improvements still need to be made."
Mr. Hill, who moved to Bermuda from England in 2006, will do whatever it takes to ensure KEMH is "first choice for health".
He added: "Patients do have a choice and we want them to choose us. There is only one hospital in Bermuda but that doesn't mean we can be complacent.
"We have to be here for people offering the right medical care 24/7."
