2021: New Year, New MEG!

A new brand for MEG but our focus on excellence in product & service remains 

‘MEG Support Tools’ is rebranding to ‘MEG’ as we continue to evolve and adapt to the rapidly growing needs of the global healthcare industry. The ‘new look’ (a new logo, refreshed brand colours and a shorter, catchier name) has been designed to reflect the evolution of MEG into an end-to-end quality management system which enables frontline workers to engage, measure and improve standards of care.

How It All Started

Since our formation in 2016, our company has changed dramatically.  As we introduced more time-saving, easy to use tools for frontline staff, MEG’s product line naturally expanded from a niche digital tool to a full end-to-end quality management system (QMS). 

We recognised that most healthcare providers have to use a complicated system of email, paper forms, Excel spreadsheets and hyperlinked documents to manage their audit, compliance, risk and patient safety processes. In response, MEG’s quality management system (QMS) was purpose-built to connect all the key components for the management of quality and patient safety conveniently in one place.

Today, our ‘all-in-one’ QMS software solution can be used on any mobile or desktop device to transform how frontline workers engage with quality improvement and patient safety initiatives. Individuals and teams can collect and organise information, collaborate with others, manage processes, automate reports and analyse insight dashboards with a simple click, swipe or scroll.

The inspiration for the new brand

Brand Colours

The new brand colours bring together the three foundational pillars of MEG’s end-to-end Quality Management system (QMS): Audits/Surveys, Risk Management, and Document Management:

Overview of digital tools available for use within MEG’s QMS modules

The Logo and Tagline

‘Just MEG It’

One of MEG Support Tools earliest customers was Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, London. The IPC  leadership team recognised the frustration and overwhelm felt by their staff when conducting infection control audits in acute and community settings. They trusted in MEG’s vision and our promise to make life easier for their frontline workers using mobile technology. 

Following a successful pilot and then Trust-wide roll-out, staff coined the term “Just MEG It” when referring to carrying out digital audits. We knew then that our promise had been realised - and from that point on ‘MEG’ was how we would be known.

The Tagline

The tagline “Engage, Measure and Improve” speaks to the ‘how’ of what we do: 

• MEG Modules: Engaging, easy to use digital data capture tools that replace paper, spreadsheets and 20th-century legacy tech systems with the handy mobile functionality we’re all used to in our personal lives

• MEG Management Dashboards: Real-time data collection of information from the frontline for measurement and instant analysis; one place to gain a clearer view of what’s going on now and forecast for the future 

• MEG’s Quality Improvement Planning (QIP) tool: Manage improvement through automated correction actions on the ward, policy updates, training and shared learning.

MEG is still ‘MEG’ in Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese...!

We are adding to our incredible customer family all the time, both at home and internationally. The new name and look is one that translates across languages with ease - and easy is what we’re all about! Last year, thousands of healthcare workers across the world logged in to our app to ‘go MEG it’ when it came to:  

• Auditing and compliance 

• Managing the hospital accreditation process from one location (JCI, ACHS etc)

• Incident reporting and risk management

• Policy and document management

• Patient and staff survey/feedback forms

• Detailed reporting and analysis with comprehensive insights dashboards 

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“We’re inspired by our clients and share their drive to better the lives of frontline workers and improve the delivery of patient care. Putting clients at the centre of our product development has given us an innovative edge and MEG is now trusted by some of the leading healthcare centres across the world. The new brand reflects a new era for MEG, with a product that helps clients to drive a culture of quality and patient safety in their organisations. ”

— Kerrill Thornhill, MEG Founder & CEO

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What does this mean for our customers?

The transition to using our new brand name, logo and colours starts from today and you will notice changes within our software platform, company website, social media and eventually across everything we do.

Here’s a summary of the changes you will see: 

• Our name (and logo) 'MEG Support Tools' is being shortened to 'MEG'. (It's what you've always called us anyway!)

• The app icon and colours will change from blue to one of our three new brand colours (depending on which module/tool you're logged in to)

• The cartoon character of ‘Meg' will continue to make an appearance in parts of the app but she will appear less in the dashboard and reporting areas

• You can access the website and control panel from our new domain name: www.megit.com. If you want to add any audits, tools or modules to your account, please get in touch and we'll ‘MEG It’ for you!

• You will also see a change in our email addresses from "@megsupporttools.com” to “@megit.com” 

** However, you will still be able to reach us through the original email, phone number and website address that you’re familiar with **

While our branding has changed, the same friendly MEG team you are used to are all still here, ready and willing to help with any questions you may have! 

We want to sincerely thank you for your continued support.  We look forward to working together and delivering a more comprehensive service for you in 2021 and beyond.

Kerrill and The MEG Team

MEG @ The Clinical Audit Improvement Conference 2020, Virtual Event

Celebrating its 20 year anniversary this CPD certified national conference brought together clinicians and managers leading local Clinical Audit for Improvement. Through a series of national updates, panel sessions, practical case studies, extended sessions and poster presentations an exceptional gathering of leading practitioners, clinicians, and policy makers set out the major developments, promote innovative areas of clinical audit, and debate the key challenges affecting clinical audit practice.

During the conference Kerrill Thornhill, MEG’s CEO & founder, discussed the role that technology can play in driving frontline workforce engagement in healthcare quality improvement. Watch the webinar below:

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In this 10-minute ‘on-demand’ webinar, Kerrill will get attendees up to speed on developments in digital auditing and QI by focusing on the MEG Audit module in the app, the Action Planning tool and Insights Dashboard. Learn:

• how advancements in mobile technology are finally making the jump from personal life to working life through a collaboration with healthcare leadership, frontline workers and health tech companies like MEG;

• how cloud applications are making it easier for frontline workers to capture data, use dashboards to understand the data, collaborate on where improvements can be made and feel more invested in the quality improvement process with all necessary tools to hand.

• create and delegate action plans and document evidence of the quality care process for stakeholders and regulators.

MEG’s mobile app allows users to quickly capture audit data and report incidents - bringing quality improvement directly into the hands of employees. The Insights dashboards are designed to help users make sense of the data that they collect from MEG’s system letting them filter and categorise information by location, staff, quality indicators and many other criteria.

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About MEG

MEG is helping healthcare organisations engage their frontline workforce in audit and quality improvement through the use of mobile technology - bringing quality improvement directly into the hands of employees.

The Insights dashboards are designed to help users make sense of the data that they collect from MEG’s system letting them filter and categorise information by location, staff, quality indicators and many other criteria. Our modules include:

• Audit & Survey

• Incident Reporting & Risk Management

• Document Management

• Clinical Guidelines on Mobile Devices

Schedule a demo today to learn if MEG could help streamline all your quality, patient safety and compliance needs.

MEG Partners with ‘HealthIT Consulting’ in APAC

HealthIT Consulting - our partner in APAC

HealthIT Consulting is a consultancy-based business, operating in New Zealand to deliver smart health and hi-tech solutions to the health IT industry.

It offers extensive technological solutions for care organizations making it easier than ever before to improve results. Their business software + tailor-made solutions + services enable care organizations to improve patient care and to raise their performance.

With 35 years of working within the health IT sector, they’ve seen many health projects succeed and health systems grow and transition as they’ve adopted efficient hi-tech solutions enabling them to scale and operate more effectively.

INFECTION CONTROL - INFECTION SURVEILLANCE SOFTWARE

Assisting healthcare providers with the end-to-end process of installing Infection and Control Surveillance Systems, by:

• Developing business cases, project structures and architecture

• Implementing and driving projects that are successful to the healthcare provider

• Selecting and integrating effective software solutions

• Providing continuous improvement measures

• Offering industry experience in National Surveillance Systems, including New Zealand, Western Australia, Singapore, Wales, and Scotland

• Providing expertise in the implementation of local hospital software

Contact INFORMATION

Contact: Mark Cox, Partner at HealthIT Consulting

Prior to HealthIT Consultancy, Mark was CEO (Asia Pacific) of ICNet International and then its Business Head following its acquisition by Baxter Healthcare Corporation.

Mark has extensive domain expertise in the turnkey delivery of infection control surveillance systems for healthcare providers.

Website: www.healthitconsulting.kiwi
Email: MarkCox@HealthITConsulting.kiwi

Phone: +64 27 268 5353

(Auckland, New Zealand)

5 Key Takeaways from the recent Covid-19 Q&A Panel Discussion (ACIPC)

On May 20th, the ACIPC hosted a ‘Covid-19 Q&A Panel Discussion’ as part of its GAMA Healthcare and ACIPC COVID-19 Webinar Series.

Chaired by Professor Brett Mitchell, this webinar gave the latest update on COVID-19. The panel consisted of experts from the world of infectious diseases and infection prevention and control: Martin Kiernan, Kathy Dempsey, Dr Andrew Stewardson and Belinda Henderson

Below, five key takeaways from the webinar.

Donning and doffing: does the sequence really matter?

Depending on where in the world you are, there are a few different variations in sequence - and none are incorrect. Overall, the principles are based around making sure staff are kept safe.

Recently, changes to the doffing sequence, in particular, were made in order to reduce the number of times a healthcare worker had to go to the facial area to remove PPE; doffing actions were bundled to reduce this.

Key takeaway:

• ‘Clean hands, clean face’ is the overriding principle to prevent staff from going anywhere near their faces with dirty hands.

Fit testing or fit checking of masks?

The panel recognised that not all healthcare settings are able to conduct proper fit testing and some hospitals that have implemented it have actually struggled to cope with demand.

Add to the mix, supply issues for certain types of masks and the fact that fit testing can be associated with a lot of wastage of this precious PPE resource, the panel concluded that, in the midst of a pandemic, this was not the right time to start this debate.

Key message:

• Fit checking for all masks is essential and should be the standard to aim for. 

• There was no conclusive evidence that fit testing actually provided superior performance in terms of prevention.

How long do people remain infectious?

Dr Stewardson suggested that perhaps a distinction had to be made about PCRs being positive, as opposed to infectious viruses being shed. Data suggests that people are infectious for around the first 7-10 days from infection onset, with peak transmissibility occurring early on in that period.

Mention was also made of troubling cases of people bring PCR positive (shedding virus) for a really long time and unable to return to work as a result. In the case of healthcare workers, especially, it’s becoming a common problem. A definitive answer sometimes is to try and get a viral culture but that can be quite a challenge in itself.

Immunity and the immune passport - is this a viable answer?

Coronavirus-specific IgE antibodies appear at about 10 days and that coincides with a reduction in viral load and transmissibility, so it looks like an adaptive immune response which is protective against infection. The ‘immune passport’ concept is one where a serological test will reveal people who are positive and identify them as ‘protected’ and able to be safely exposed. 

However, there are many groups, including the WHO, who have responded quickly and negatively against this concept. They bring attention to the importance of thinking about what the PCR really means and accepting that that there is still a lot about immunity and this disease that is still unknown:  

• Not all people who recover from Covid-19 have detectable antibodies (10-20%)

• Of those that do, there an unclear relationship between antibodies and functional immunity or protection against virus e.g. the threshold level to establish immunity is unknown

• Questions still exist about the duration of immunity, if immunity does exist

• Questions about the tests themselves, with a recent report showing 50-60% sensitivity with some of the commercially-available serological tests in Australia.

Key takeaways:

• It’s possible that those who test positive on serology are not immune

• And it’s possible that those who test negative are immune

• Evidence will continue to be gathered in the coming weeks and months but, as for now,  it’s hard to be definitive as to what it all means.

Is CPR an aerosol-generating procedure?

Australia has approached this by making a distinction between CPR broadly (differentiating between CPR and advanced CPR with airway management often intubation) and that of chest compressions, with the position that *chest compressions are not an aerosol-generating procedure.

In the absence of conclusive evidence that chest compression/defibrillation is associated with virus transmission, the recommendation being made nationally is that first responder can initiate chest compression and defibrillation with ‘droplet precautions’ in patients with suspected or confirmed Covid-19 infection, while others are donning their ‘airborne precautions’ and enter to take over airways management. 

* Below is the systematic review mentioned by the panel that concluded that chest compressions weren’t associated with an increased of SARS transmission and that the risk was actually associated with airway management.

Tran K, Cimon K, Severn M, Pessoa-Silva CL, Conly J. Aerosol generating procedures and risk of transmission of acute respiratory infections to healthcare workers: a systematic review. PLoS One. 2012;7(4):e35797. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0035797

Broader thoughts around aerosol-generating procedures…

There was a call for consensus among the professional groups and public health bodies as to what is an aerosol-generating procedure (AGP). It was recognised that this was something that needed to be agreed upon in a time of calm and not one of crisis. 

Key takeaway:

• Universal consensus on the definition of an AGP is needed. Particular procedures causing confusion (and subsequently PPE supply issues in the UK) as to their status as AGP (or not), include:

• Oral suction

• Nebulisers

• Chest compressions

What vaccines or new treatments are on the horizon…?

Dr Stewardson indicated that lots of therapeutic studies were currently being carried out the moment - but all in the context of clinical trials. The outcomes of these, whether effective or not, are likely to be available before a vaccine.

Key takeaway:

• For the moment, the approach to managing the virus is still centred around infection prevention and public health measures.

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Click below to learn more about MEG’s Covid-19 Hospital Toolkit - a feature bundle in our QMS software application that current IPC customers find most useful in adapting to the new reality that SARS-CoV-2 on the wards brings.

IPC & AMS: Beyond the Pandemic Crisis?

As we finally start to experience a flattening of the curve and IPC teams’ attention is starting to slowly turn from pandemic ‘crisis response’, questions about how the last few months will possibly impact HAI numbers and AMS programmes are beginning to surface.

In addition, how will hospitals manage the new reality of wards and departments containing SARS-CoV-2 infected patients mixing with those in the ‘highly vulnerable’ groups?

Our infographic below summarises the main points highlighted in a recent opinion piece on the topic (1):

Perhaps now is the time to harness the renewed enthusiasm and respect for infection control programmes in hospitals and make the business case for investment in technology to support and strengthen infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship efforts.

We can help you do this.

MEG’s award-winning digital Audit Management system is used in leading hospitals to:

• carry out audits on any kind of device, anytime, anywhere - even in poor connectivity

• quickly identify and prioritise problems with ‘risk-level’ heatmaps,

• create, delegate and automate actions/tasks to 'close-the-loop'

• check the status of non-compliance action items - even with maintenance teams; clear obstacles fast

• get detailed reports in real-time, and

• monitor compliance rates over time

MEG's integrated QIP tool is the workhorse of modern IPC and AMS teams.

Want to learn more? Click below to speak to us about our extended free trial offer for IPC hospital and community teams.

References

(1) Stevens, M., Doll, M., Pryor, R., Godbout, E., Cooper, K., & Bearman, G. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 on traditional healthcare-associated infection prevention efforts. Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, 1-2. doi:10.1017/ice.2020.141

Safety and the ‘Speak Up’ culture during the COVID-19 emergency

A joint statement released yesterday by the CQC, and shared with providers of health and adult social care for #NHSEngland, has thanked health and care staff all over England for their heroic responses to the many challenges facing them and the people they are caring for.

They reiterated that now, more than ever, safety remains a priority for the whole system to reduce the risk of avoidable harm to people by following safety systems, guidance and recommendations that ensure the right care is provided, as intended, every time and continuing to report safety incidents locally using professional and clinical judgement. They also emphasized the need to continue to learn from what works as well as what does not.

They asked all leaders of health and care services to support this by encouraging a supportive culture where people are free to speak up about risks and adverse outcomes.

A Speak Up culture is not just about encouraging workers to raise concerns: it is about listening to what they are saying, acting on the information and providing feedback.

If you are interested in learning more about how MEG can help you drive a Just Culture of quality improvement, click the link to get in touch.

Neuro Spinal Hospital in Dubai chooses MEG for more efficient compliance and quality management

Present at the announcement made at Arab Health 2020 are (L to R): Eamon Sikafi, Enterprise Ireland; Kerrill Thornhill, CEO & Founder, MEG; Peter Clifford, COO, MEG; Dana Msaddi, COO, Neuro Spinal Hospital, Aidan Cronin, Irish Ambassador to UAE

The Irish medtech company announces a new Dubai-based customer as it expands its international reach into the Middle East 

[Dublin, 20th January 2020] The Neuro Spinal Hospital in Dubai has signed a 3-year contract with MEG for the implementation of its digital healthcare quality management system, enabling the hospital to remain a regional pioneer of medicine and technology.

Over the last seventeen years, the Neuro Spinal Hospital has established itself as a renowned centre of excellence and referral destination for neurosurgical, spinal, neurological, and orthopaedic treatments.

MEG’s Quality Management System is a suite of digital products designed to allow hospitals to more efficiently plan, implement, analyse and action quality improvement and compliance initiatives in a highly scalable manner.

Mrs. Dana Msaddi, the hospital’s COO, reports that MEG was selected because the Neuro Spinal Hospital wanted to find a solution provider that they could truly partner with to execute on their promise of the highest quality of care for their patients.  

“This is extremely important as Neuro Spinal Hospital is transitioning to a new state of the art facility bringing the first Cyberknife system to the UAE. The new hospital is designed to provide patients and their families with a world-class healing experience.  Likewise, processes have been designed to ensure the highest standards of patient and employee safety, and MEG is our enabler to deliver this promise. We have found MEG to be the ideal partner in our journey to raise the bar on care standards and patient experience in the region and we believe they share our passion for caring and putting patients' interest at the centre of everything they do”.

MEG’s announcement coincides with their attendance this month at Arab Health 2020, as part of its international expansion plans into the Middle East healthcare sector, a market it has identified as offering huge opportunities over the next five years. The MEG stand can be found at the Ireland Pavilion H2. A10.

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About MEG 

MEG provides a digital Quality Management System that helps hospitals to drive a culture of quality improvement through efficient management of their clinical governance and JCI accreditation strategies.

Use the suite of powerful mobile and cloud-based modules to manage risk and compliance processes, compare performance across multiple sites, and maximise quality care and patient safety hospital-wide. 

The MEG system has been deployed in 50+ hospitals across the UK, Ireland, and Australia and is leading to significant improvements in the delivery of healthcare. For more information go to www.megsupporttools.com or email info@megsupporttools.com.

MEG is a recent graduate of the prestigious, Dublin-based NDRC’s Accelerator Programme.

About Neuro Spinal Hospital 

The Neuro Spinal Hospital (NSH) is the leading specialised hospital in the UAE for the last 20 years, delivering advanced care for patients needing complex treatment in orthopaedic, neurosurgical, neurological and spinal surgery establishing itself as a regional centre of referral. True to its promise to bring patients of the region the latest and the best, NSH has been a pioneer in the introduction of many technologies and procedures for the first time,  among which: the first BrainSuite in the UAE and second worldwide, the first upright MRI, performing the first Intraoperative Brain Mapping (awake brain surgery). 

NSH’s latest addition will be the inauguration of its new 120 beds specialised facility in Dubai Science Park combining state of the art equipment with international expertise. The current services will be complemented by an advanced Oncology Centre including the first Cyberknife centre in the UAE. The hospital has been designed with the help of patients to provide a healing experience built around their needs. It will allow them access to treatments they otherwise needed to seek abroad as well as attract more medical tourism from the Gulf Region and Northern Africa. 

Passionate about education, the new facility will house an advanced training centre to keep up with the latest breakthroughs in medicine and educate physicians of the community.

Let's Meet at Arab Health 2020!

The MEG senior team are attending Arab Health this January 2020. We look forward to meeting with JCI hospital management with responsibility and an interest in quality management and compliance with JCI standards.

Take advantage of a FREE session with our senior MEG team and learn how to understand your risk in real-time and be JCI survey-ready in 2020 and beyond:

• Free review of your current workflows and processes, including how productivity can be improved 

• How to assure executives of compliance using attractive, sophisticated reporting dashboards

• How to demonstrate continual improvement and reduce delays in corrective actions

• Take your own digitised JCI Mock Tracers for a test drive!

When?

The MEG team will be exhibiting at Arab Health from 27th-30th January 2020

Where?

Arab Health is the largest gathering of healthcare and trade professionals in the MENA region. Arab Health 2020 will be held at Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, U.A.E.

How?

Booth #11, The IRELAND PAVILION, Hall 2 Area 10

Contact us to schedule a meeting: info@megsupporttools.com