Ochsner Health is a system that delivers health to the people of Louisiana, Mississippi and the Gulf South with a mission to Serve, Heal, Lead, Educate and Innovate.
As the COVID-19 pandemic reached Louisiana, teams across Ochsner began to quickly respond to the growing needs and challenges faced by the organization. The iO team immediately got to work designing and building response projects that leverage the team’s diverse expertise and experience in digital health, engineering and data analytics. In partnership with internal departments, these projects rapidly deployed across the system and continue to impact patient care today.
While Ochsner had a sufficient level of PPE throughout the crisis, internal teams mobilized quickly to be proactive about finding additional sources. iO’s Engineering Lab leveraged its rapid prototyping skills and worked with Supply Chain, Infection Control, front-line care teams and local and national vendors to design and manufacture PPE items at scale to augment our supply. The first product was designed and validated within a couple of days and produced at scale within a week, helping to keep patients and care teams safe while creating jobs in the local community. The team has since prototyped 15 products and produced 8 different PPE items for distribution in Ochsner facilities, including face shields, isolation gowns, several different types of face masks, hand sanitizer and hand sanitizer stands. iO also secured copper-infused reusable face masks that were distributed across the system.
iO’s analytics team, together with IS, worked with the Louisiana Department of Health to create a statewide registry that has compiled data on all patients that have received a positive or negative test for COVID-19, not limited to Ochsner patients. The database includes all clinical, symptomatic and patient level data available to create a rich data source for future research. This database enabled users to analyze the spread of the virus, track hot spots quickly, measure the effectiveness of interventions, and use it for contact tracing and testing as future cases emerged.
iO worked closely with IS and providers to develop the COVID-19 Surveillance Program, a remote monitoring program that manages COVID-19 patients safely at home. The Program is designed for patients who do not meet criteria for hospital admission but remain at risk for deterioration at home and for patients after hospital discharge who need additional monitoring. Enrolled patients receive a pulse oximeter and use it to securely submit health data twice daily for two weeks, including relevant symptoms and vitals like heart rate, oxygen saturation and temperature. If concerning symptoms or vital signs are reported, notification is sent to a dedicated clinical team for follow-up.
“I personally thought the COVID-19 Surveillance Program was awesome care with the convenience of being home sick. The surveys, NP virtual visits were just the level of care I needed. They patiently listened to my concerns and addressed all my symptoms and fears. The whole experience was actually empowering as I was able to monitor my fever, chills, headache, breathing and coughing issues and fears. The experience was really helpful and I truly appreciate it.” – Anonymous patient
Almost immediately iO worked closely with Operations, IS and Supply Chain to rapidly acquire and implement proven innovations used in Optimal Hospital across the system. Copper-infused linens and tables were distributed to over 1,100+ in-patient beds to reduce transmission of the virus and protect patients and front-line healthcare workers. Sotera Wireless ViSi remote vitals monitors were also deployed to 174 beds to limit staff exposure and keep continuous watch over patients.
Ochsner Health COVID-19 Resources Page
Ochsner Health PPE Innovation Video
Ochsner Windowed Masks Project