Assessors and inspectors see the Sematics record at every visit

The problem

"It will help you get through your UKAS inspection." That is what Sophie Protheroe, Blood Transfusion Section Manager at Wye Valley NHS Trust, tells other trusts. Her team stores blood products in fridges, freezers, incubators and walk-in cold rooms, and every one of them has to be watched and evidenced.

Without automated monitoring, blood bank units need a manual temperature check every two hours, and a manager then has to review and sign off those checks. The trust's previous monitoring system worked, but it couldn't show what was happening in real time, including in the issue fridge used during major haemorrhage, where frequent door openings make temperatures move quickly.

What we did

JTF monitors the department's storage on the Sematics platform, with alarms sent by email and phone so a person sees a problem as it happens.

• Blood bank fridges and freezers, incubators and walk-in refrigerated storage, monitored continuously.

• The high-use issue fridge watched in real time, so the team can see temperature spikes during emergency use.

• Root cause and corrective action recorded in Sematics for smaller deviations, with larger incidents backed by extra documents and equipment checks.

• Calibration certificates stored and signed off in Sematics. "I really like that feature. Because then I don't have to print stuff off and put it into folders."

Support runs through tickets and planned engineer visits, timed to keep disruption low during calibration. "Every time I've come to you I pretty much get a resolution from it."

The result

The team now spends a few minutes each morning on the Sematics dashboard as part of its daily checklist. "You can have a quick glance at the front page, it saves you time."

The team shows assessors and inspectors the Sematics record at every visit. History and audit records are there without preparation ("Straight away I was able to get the data"), and the audit trail shows that readings are reviewed and signed off, not just recorded.

Asked whether she would recommend JTF to another trust, Sophie said she already has, for ease of use, compliance support and the working relationship. "You are looking to improve the system with us, trying to give us ways to improve it."