Boston Children’s Hospital is going global with its pediatric care, already renowned around the world. The idea is to give more children, regardless of where they live, the best care possible and to share expertise that can help save lives. The new initiative is spurred by an open mind on the part of Boston Children’s Hospital team and a technology platform developed by IBM.
Today, Boston Children’s and IBM announced OPENPediatrics, touting it as the world’s first global education technology platform. The aim: to transform how pediatric medicine is taught and practiced around the world. The technology is designed to improve the exchange of medical knowledge on the care of critically ill children regardless of the resources available.
Every year, nearly 7 million children under age five die from illnesses such as pneumonia, diarrhea and malaria despite the availability of life-saving medical solutions, according to Boston Children'. The new technology platform – called OPENPediatrics – equips doctors and nurses with the knowledge and skills they need to save children’s lives during intensive care situations. The initiative will extend beyond critical care as adoption of the platform grows, officials said in launching the project.
IBM developed the technology platform – employing some of its existing technologies – at IBM Labs in Cambridge, Mass.
[See also: Boston Children's maps new way of care.]
In its pilot phase, more than 1,000 doctors and nurses in 74 countries on six continents are employing OPENPediatrics in their work.
OPENPediatrics brings specialized medical knowledge from expert clinicians to thousands of pediatric caregivers across the globe. Through an on-demand, interactive, digital and social learning experience, medical professionals are trained and equipped to perform critical-care procedures and provide life-saving treatment for children who would not otherwise have access to intensive care.
“Nothing breaks down walls and brings people together like caring for a critically ill child," said Jeffrey Burns, MD, chief of Critical Care Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital, in announcing Boston Children’s plans.
[See also: The road less traveled.]
“With IBM’s technology arsenal and our critical care expertise, we partnered to bring our vision of stronger pediatric care to countries across the globe. In doing so, we’re extending the reach of medical education to help save children’s lives and laying the groundwork for the digital hospital of the future.”
Sean Hogan, vice president of healthcare at IBM credits Burns and his colleagues for embracing what might have seemed to some – four or five years ago when the initiative was in conception – what might have seemed a "far-out idea."
The concept was Burns', Hogan says, and he is the champion.
In many respects, says Hogan, "the least of it was technology. The bigger challenge was understanding the implications – the business model for all involved, for organizations who have intellectual property for how they deliver care and medicine."
Putting that into the realm of open represents a huge step – and what some might see as a risk.
"People in healthcare are very creative, and they have this insatiable urge to continue to learn," Hogan told Healthcare IT News. "That’s what ultimately this OPENPediatrics is about. It’s by design about opening up the process of learning for others, and sharing."
OPENPediatrics was conceived after Burns received a phone call from a pediatrician in Guatemala who needed advice while caring for a girl with a serious infection. After helping the physician complete treatment, the girl survived. Burns wanted to open this type of critical care dialogue between physicians around the world.
Via OPENPediatrics, medical personnel can access a range of state-of-the-art simulations, video seminars and illustrations in real-time to help them treat critically ill patients. For example, simulation can train a physician to use a pediatric ventilator. In addition, to fuel social interactions and learning, OPENPediatrics hosts a global social collaboration forum that connects experts from around the world to share breakthrough findings, best practices and patient care examples.
Early reports show that OPENPediatrics is changing the course of treatment. One physician in Israel reported that OPENPediatrics video demonstrations helped him master a key procedure, to ensure adequate nutrition and hydration in critically ill children and at the Fundación Aldo Castañeda in Guatemala, physicians using OPENPediatrics learned new ways to avoid infections, resulting in a new infection prevention program.
“Boston Children’s Hospital recognized a need to enable smarter medical decisions when children’s lives are at stake,” Mike Rhodin, senior vice president, Software Solutions Group, IBM, said in a news release. “Through the power of social networking technologies, IBM has been able to significantly advance the dissemination of knowledge around the world to help ensure better patient outcomes. OPENPediatrics is a perfect example of the transformative power of technology to help solve healthcare’s most pressing problems.”
The OPENPediatrics platform includes:
- A social network that connects the global community of pediatric care providers to exchange ideas on best practices and to discuss questions between peers.
- On-demand curricula and medical literature on pediatric specialty care. Current curricula include information on diagnosing and treating blood infections, high blood sugar, brain trauma and more.
- Training videos of advanced procedures such as chest tube placement.
- Simulation experiences that create an interactive learning environment, allowing physicians to practice comprehensive treatments in virtual settings
OPENPediatrics is designed to work online or offline, automatically pulling down the most up-to-date training information and social interactions via the cloud once a computer is connected to the Internet. It can be loaded on a PC or even a thumb drive so doctors in remote locations with low bandwidth can access or share the data.
