I am in charge of the outreach program. I make sure the schedule is planned and adhered to when we go on outreach. I make sure the mobile clinic is set up and supervise volunteers and staff to make sure their units are functioning well and doing what they are supposed to do. At the end of the month I ensure all statistics are collated and submitted on time. Why do I like my job? Ah! It is the passion! It’s really a passion. I like serving people. I like saving lives. I like encouraging people. When they are sick they are stressed and I like to make them feel better. I really like my job as a whole. This job is very, very important. One, we are targeting vulnerable people, particularly the malnourished children. We have seen that the cases are many so we need to rehabilitate them and help them recover. Many of the protein rich foods are expensive here and families are too poor to afford them. We give them the pikinmix food and health talks to make sure they are helping their children grow. We also do a lot to prevent the malaria prevalence rate, which is so high here. HIV is another area where we can help. Many villages don’t have the facilities so we give them quality counseling and make sure they have access to their medication. Also the prenatal program helps so many people. We advise them to come to Mercy and not give birth at home and give them multivitamins that otherwise they would not get.
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On Friday, January 18, Mercy Hospital officially launched its Electronic Medical Information System (EMIS) - a database which will enable the hospital to use electronic medical records to track patient data. The first electronic records management system in the country, the database will have a positive impact on patient care as it will be much easier to access a patient's history and chart. Hospital Administrator, Jinnah Lahai, is thrilled about this new addition to Mercy. “It has added more value to Mercy in comparison to other facilities. It will lead to greater transparency and data security." Joseph Lamin and the Mercy Laboratory team, has led the effort in creating the software that will be used. District Medical Officer, Dr. Roland Carshon-Marsh, is working closely with Mercy to supervise compliance with standards for medical records management and confidentiality. While paper will no longer be used for data entry, communication, or analysis, every electronic medical records system maintains redundant electronic and paper record back up copies - and Mercy's EMIS is no exception. Once the electronic information system is fully operational, all units of the hospital will contribute to it, enabling all patient information to be stored electronically. The EMIS also tracks drug and supply inventory and staff shift time logs. EMIS produces valid research data on diagnosis as well as effective interventions and treatments. Under the current system, patients are tracked by a patient number, but if they forget or lose that number, the staff is forced to either sort through thousands of patient cards or start a new chart. Starting a new chart is easier, but it means the loss of all patient history that preceded it. The new system will make communication between units instantaneous which will mean that patients are able to receive input on their care from a variety of Mercy staff in real time. Registration of patients will include fingerprint identification as an element to permit accurately matching patient charts with medical histories. Sierra Leone has a high rate of illiteracy and poor records in villages. Patients often do not know how to spell their names or have current address information or know their date of birth. Paper records often become damaged and unreadable or lost. Fingerprint identification mitigates against all of these challenges. Creating reports based on the data will be much easier and more accurate. The database will greatly reduce the chances of error and leave more time for analyzing data and refining programs instead of painstakingly gathering numbers. Data will also be collected from the outreach programs, which will help Mercy identify trends in who is seeking care at Mercy or its outreach, what are the most concerning diseases, and how programs can be altered to best suit the needs of the community. Lamin projects that the Mercy staff will be comfortable using the system within two weeks of its mid-January launch, and adept by week six. Mercy Dr. Sao Amara, is looking forward to the system becoming fully operational, “it will help with tracking patients, increase financial accountability, reduce patient wait times, assure patient confidentiality and and allow staff to be informed about patient status quickly.” Emmanuel Moriba (7 months) was identified on the Mattru on the Rail outreach. He was acutely malnourished and had a fever and coughing for three days. He was given medicine and enrolled into the nutrition program. After two months in the program, he was discharged this month. His mother, Kadijatu, says, “I was really worried with my child’s condition. I heard that the Mercy Hospital Outreach team will visit our village and I brought him to see them. Thank God, he will well now. They are really caring." |
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