Fewer babies are being admitted to hospital in Lincolnshire with jaundice, thanks to the introduction of new monitoring devices used in the community.
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust’s community midwives and health care support workers are using new jaundice monitors to keep an eye on jaundice in babies. This means that they can be monitored at home, rather than having to come to hospital.
The monitors are placed on the baby’s torso and within a matter of seconds a reading is produced, showing how serious the baby’s jaundice is. This enables the clinicians to make a judgement about whether a hospital admission is required.
In the month since the meters were introduced in December 2017, the community teams reviewed 244 babies with jaundice, and of these only 25 had to be referred into hospital for paediatric review.
This shows the meters are preventing unnecessary admissions, reducing the pressure on inpatient paediatric services as well as reducing waiting times, as well as providing an improved experience for families.
Acting community midwife coordinator Olivia Maxwell said, “We are always looking at ways we can improve patient experience and introducing something as simple as this jaundice monitor is already producing some amazing results.
“No-one wants to spend any more time in hospital than they have to and these easy-to-use machines mean we can manage jaundice in the community setting.”