Healthcare Open Innovation Challenge

The onset of COVID-19 has tested global healthcare systems. As we move forward in the COVID era, there is a need to innovate and revolutionise healthcare. 

Enterprise Singapore, together with five of Singapore's leading healthcare providers, brings together the Healthcare Open Innovation Challenge. Local and international industry players were welcomed to participate in the challenge to transform healthcare delivery in Singapore. The challenge leverages Singapore's leading healthcare system, providing a unique opportunity for enterprises to engage with clinicians and healthcare providers throughout development.

   Industry Track (A Partnership between SingHealth and NUHS)

Operating Theatre Resource Monitoring

How might we have real-time oversight and overview of resources (manpower, infrastructure, equipment, operating rooms) and patient movement across the perioperative setting?

The Operating Theatre (OT) is a costly resource in an acute hospital. Optimising the utilisation of OT resources may lead to a reduction in wait time to surgery thereby increasing access to care for patients. Currently, scheduling and utilisation of OT resources such as manpower, equipment, infrastructure (including operating rooms) are optimised manually. This challenge is exacerbated as a result of last-minute surgical cancellations due to no-shows or patients falling ill on the day of surgery.

We envision a platform with real-time visibility that provides an oversight of resources and patient movement. This platform will enhance our ability to optimise OT utilisation through the use of visualisation tools and predictive capabilities. There are opportunities to leverage AI to better predict the risk of cancellation, so that appropriate decisions and action may be taken. The outcome is to optimise freed-up OT slots and improve access to care for patients who require an urgent procedure, while generating significant cost savings for the hospital.

   Enterprise Track: Pharmacy Service Experience

How might we create a patient-centric, end-to-end service experience for patients requiring pharmaceutical care, with healthcare staff involved in their care journey?

Current pharmacy services for Specialist Outpatient Clinics (SOC) patients are largely unplanned and reactive in nature. Patients are triaged on-site at registration counters, with the majority receiving medication via face-to-face dispensing. There is little integration in workflow, process and system for patient journey between the SOC and the pharmacies. Thus, patients' dwelling time in healthcare institutions and their waiting time in the pharmacies remain long. In addition, engaging patients early in their healthcare journey to identify needs and preferences can increase compliance with a plan of care and treatment.

We hope to explore a patient-centric approach that is personalised to shape the outpatient visit journeys for our patients, one that provides a single platform to support an end-to-end seamless visit experience.

This includes but not limited to the following:

• One-stop service of triaging
• Payment
• Consent taking
• Medication reconciliation and supply
• Counselling or education
• Treatment monitoring

   Enterprise Track: Patient Analytics

How might we leverage technology and big data to prioritise care for patients based on clinical need and urgency?
Given finite healthcare resources, we aim to harness technology and big data to prioritise care for patients based on clinical need and urgency. We envision a platform powered by predictive analytics, which will empower the medical teams to execute clinical interventions to provide targeted patient care and optimise the healthcare resources.

Prioritising access to care based on patient risk profiles can assist in optimal allocation of healthcare resources, thereby maximising care outcomes for patients. 

For more information on Healthcare Open Innovation Challenge, click here.