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Centre for Health Informatics

Current research projects within the Centre for Health Informatics

This page gives details of all research activity currently ongoing within the Centre for Health Informatics, divided by Research Group :

eHealth and Telecare
High Dependency
Public Health


eHealth and Telecare

The increased use of ICT in the organisation and delivery of healthcare offers the potential to increase the information and knowledge available to the clinician to support their decision-making. In this way the development of decision support systems forms a key component of the research programme of the Centre. Related to this is research seeking to automate the process of acquiring medical knowledge from the web, and developing tools to manage such knowledge more effectively.

However, as well as supporting the clinician, there are also opportunities to help the patient better manage their disease. This is particularly the case in relation to chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension, where information systems are being developed with the objective of making the patient better informed about their disease condition.


Evaluation of the pilot implementation of an IT specification for a blood tracking system
Principal investigator: Professor Jonathan Kay, Professor Abdul Roudsari
Funding source: NHS Connecting for Health Evaluation Programme
Duration: 19 May 2008 - 19 November 2009
Overview:
City University London has been appointed to conduct an evaluation of a new national blood tracking system. The pilot system, developed by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) in collaboration with the National Blood Transfusion Committee (NBTC) and the Serious Hazards of Transfusions (SHOT) organisation, aims to improve the safety of blood transfusion in the UK.

The pilot is currently being run within the London wing of Mayday NHS Trust in Croydon. It incorporates barcoding and radio frequency identification technology to allow blood to be tracked from sampling to transfusion; helping to ensure the correct blood is administrated to all patients.The evaluation will set out to produce a clear, comprehensive picture of the implementation, performance and impact, as well as safety and reliability of the new, emerging radio frequency identification blood tracking system.

The work by City will include an evaluation of compliance with the relevant guidance from NHS CFH, NPSA, and the EU Blood Directive and also on effectiveness, efficiency and reliability of the system. This will include the final register of technical issues, and analysis of adverse incidents and proxy measures for misidentification.

Researchers will use “before” and “after’ data from clinical areas that migrate and compare this with areas that are not migrating. Where possible, the evaluation will use the same methodology and criteria as in other innovative projects at the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals. The major sources of information will be:


High Dependency

The intensive care unit, operating theatre and other high dependency hospital environments are increasingly dependent on advanced healthcare technologies including applications of ICT. These are particularly data-rich environments and hence a major challenge is to extract the maximum of information to support clinical decision-making.

The development of tools to support the interpretation of such data is a key focus of the research of the Centre. This includes developing advanced mathematical techniques to detect trends in heart rate and to interpret EEG signals which, for example, may provide early warning of possible brain dysfunction.

Modelling also forms an important component of the research programme. At one level, modelling can provide added insight into the changes of blood flow that occur following cardiac surgery. At another level, modelling can be used as an aid to planning the management of interacting high dependency units, predicting length of stay of the acutely ill patient as they progress from operating theatre to intensive care unit to step-down unit etc.


TOAST: Intelligent Operator Advising System for Transient Interpretation
Principal investigator: Dr Peter Weller
Funding: £147,134
Funding source: Ministry of Defence, UK
Duration: 1 January 2007 - 31 January 2010
Overview: TBC


Public Health

Changes in the organisation of healthcare delivery mean that public health professionals are more widely dispersed across healthcare organisations. Given this situation, ICT becomes increasingly important in ensuring effective communication amongst the public health community. Assisting in this process is one of the aims of the research programme being undertaken in the Centre.

Modelling the prevalence of disease helps in assessing the need for health care facilities. When coupled with cost modelling, information can be obtained to support decision making in relation to changes in service provision; one example is the provision of screening services to identify retinopathy in the diabetic patient.

Modelling, making use of soft systems methodology, can yield insights regarding the real needs for specific healthcare services, and offers powerful tools which can, for example, assess the worth of National Service Frameworks, for instance that which has been developed in relation to services for the diabetic patient. Such modelling provides a powerful aid to the health policy maker.

Other research focuses on the needs of those with impaired vision, including the role of electronic systems in helping to ensure that the patient is better informed.


No current projects at the present time.