MedCare

The Problem to Solve

Routine patient care should be just that: routine. Yet, as burnout rates in healthcare escalate and staffing issues worsen, errors in patient care are increasing. As of 2023, 1 in 4 patients are harmed in the hospitals where they seek treatment. This rise in patient care failures isn't due to care technicians or nurses but rather the systems in place. Hospital management software is often confusing, with user interfaces that are not intuitive. It's common for new employees to undergo training sessions of over 8 hours to learn these systems, which ideally should be straightforward to use. We aim to change that.

What It Does

Our software simplifies tracking routine patient care. Our website organizes each PCT or nurse's patients into a streamlined dashboard. Patient needs are displayed in a color-coded table to indicate priority. The tables update in real-time based on industry-standard intervals, which users can customize. Meal times are synced with the system clock, and blood sugars are automatically checked to maintain healthy levels. Now, tasks like recording blood pressure, feeding times, and repositioning patients to prevent pressure sores can be updated with a few simple clicks.

How We Built It

We aimed to create a patient portal that is user-friendly and scalable. We chose foundational languages like HTML and CSS for the front end, with a JavaScript backend. Patient data is stored in unique objects identified by names and IDs. Timers in the backend update patient needs at intervals from 1 second to 5 minutes, depending on the urgency of care, and modify the dashboard without further input after initial setup.

Challenges We Ran Into

Our biggest challenge was ensuring smooth variable integration across different files. We struggled to relay information from the 'Add Patient' page to the Dashboard. Ensuring variables and related timestamps passed seamlessly without extra user actions and within the same object without a formal database was difficult. We overcame this by storing static patient data locally and using the setInterval function to update dynamic data like clocks at regular intervals.

Accomplishments We're Proud Of

Our interface is intuitive and effective. A quick look at the Patient Dashboard clearly indicates priorities. Care providers no longer need to doubt whether tasks are complete. A color-coded system instantly shows whether tasks like collecting blood sugar data or providing meals have been done—green for completed tasks and red for urgent ones. We hope this system will help reduce in-hospital injuries.

What's Next for MedCare

We plan to add a priority-ordered To-Do list to the dashboard. High-risk patient needs will top the list, with less urgent tasks below. We've also devoted substantial development time to an algorithm that predicts changes in patient blood sugars, using limited data points and the Harris Benedict equation to foresee hypoglycemic and hyperglycemic events 15 minutes in advance. This tool aims to free healthcare workers from administrative tasks, allowing more time for direct patient care. Lastly, we're integrating two APIs: Drug Bank for checking drug interactions and Truepill for cross-referencing patient conditions with prescriptions. Our ultimate goal is to automate processes to enable healthcare workers to dedicate their energy to patient care.