Scanning for safety: GS1 standards

GS1 barcoding technology is currently being rolled out at ‘Demonstrator sites’, across the NHS, with funding from the Department of Health. As well as saving money and improving efficiency, it is argued that barcoding of medical devices, patients and staff will improve patient safety, free time to care and improve the patient experience.

The Department of Health Information Standards Board has adopted GS1 identifiers and barcodes as the standard to be used in NHS Trusts in England for a wide variety of applications, including the tracking and identifying of: surgical instruments, medical devices and records, as well as the patients and staff themselves. But what does this mean for patient care and why should the GS1 standards matter to clinical staff working on the frontline of healthcare? In addition, during this time of austerity, how can hospitals justify investment in the necessary technology? These are just some of the many questions addressed at the recent GS1 UK annual healthcare conference, attended by more than 350 professionals from the healthcare sector.

Conference speakers and delegates shared their expertise and experience on a range of topics including patient safety, regulatory compliance, operational efficiency, transparency, legislation, sustainability and others. They all focused on the benefits of GS1 standards and how standardisation means more time for patient care, better understanding of costs, better comparison of clinical performance and exposing variations in clinical practice.