MedTracks

You can track your Domino’s pizza, you can track your UPS package, you can even track your friends, and now you can track your hospital care with MedTracks.

Inspiration

As a patient, one of the most frustrating aspects of being admitted to the hospital is not knowing how long you have to wait or what you are even waiting for. Often times, poor clinician-patient communication leaves patients feeling forgotten when no one comes to update them or confused as to why they are waiting so long. Lack of communication about wait time decreases a patient’s confidence in the care provider, and perceived quality of care, significantly decreasing their satisfaction.

What it does

MedTacks is a personalized notification system that enhances the communication between clinicians and patients by increasing the transparency of their healthcare. Since our system takes current data from the HL7 framework, there is no user input and therefore does not add to staff’s existing workload. Every time a lab, test, xray, or consultation is ordered or completed, Medtracks utilizes time points obtained from the HL7 framework to update patients via their in-room TV. Additionally, our system can calculate average wait times for various procedures by leveraging time points in the HL7 system.

What's next for MedTracks

We hope to extend this technology to patients requiring more extensive health visits, generalize this technology to specific types of visits, and further increase communication with patients on broader topics such as medication and meal delivery. Not only will MedTracks help to mitigate the frustrations of patients and worried family members, but we also hope to further decrease medical threats malpractice by improving medical records and care communication. MedTracks is a readily implementable and affordable solution that can improve patient satisfaction, and ensuring a dignified health care experience for all.