Matrix system for the management of resources allocation of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Felicio Rocho Hospital

Abstract

This paper presents the project “Matrix System for the Management of Resources Allocation of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Felicio Rocho Hospital Hospital”, which was developed in order to attend the demands of the hospital medical team. The scope of this work goes beyond the humanitarian aspects of health care. It also covers some managing aspects of the clinical setting by means of controlling the allocation of human and material resources. The project consists on the development of a monitoring system that registrates the flow of physicians and staff throughout the ICU. This system is integrated to the medical records of the clinical procedures performed on patients in the ICU. The main technological basis used in the system is infrared (IR), a simple technology and low cost, attached to the health care professionals' nametags, which enables the tracking of their presence in the ICU. The data collected on the nametags is transmitted to software (open source) that works as a communication feed to a model of management matrix.This system provides important information regarding hospital management, such as the use of medical resources and the hospitalization period of patients, at the same time that is attached to the patient's medical record. As a result, this database would allow for an improvement in the provided services' quality once it generates useful information for a more effective hospital management. Furthermore, this paper also highlights important issues regarding the implementation of technological projects in health and emergency environments.This work emphasize the results of the inclusion of ethics, moral, environmental and humanistic principles in the education of engineers at the Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais - PUC Minas.