16.03.16
Leeds Trust and GS1 launch new partnership in demonstrator site programme
The GS1 demonstrator programme has launched with a partnership between GS1 UK and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
GS1 will open an on-site project office to help with the delivery of full GS1 implementation against defined timelines.
Leeds is one of six NHS acute trusts receiving £12m funding to demonstrate significant efficiencies and cost savings, reduced errors and better patient outcomes by adopting GS1 electronic barcoding standards in procurement.
Tony Whitfield, director of finance at the trust, said: “We are delighted to be working on this exciting project. It will mean that every location, medicine and medical device will be identified using a unique barcode which is also associated with a particular patient, providing additional monitoring for safety purposes.
“It will make it easier to track individual patient journeys through our hospitals and ensure we only order the stock we need at the time we need it, delivering significant cost savings.”
Whitfield and Chris Slater, the head of supplies and procurement at the trust, will showcase ‘the Leeds way’ of implementing GS1 standards at the annual GS1 UK Healthcare Conference on 12-13 April.
NHE interviewed Slater and Leeds’ e-business manager Graham Medwell about the trust’s pioneering work on e-enablement and inventory control in 2014.
Glen Hodgson, head of healthcare at GS1 UK, said: “We are excited to work with the Leeds team to support the leadership of the GS1 implementation project.
“We look forward to welcoming them at our upcoming healthcare conference where they’ll showcase their commitment in championing and driving forward the adoption of GS1 and PEPPOL [Pan European Public Procurement On-line] standards.”