{"id":1594,"date":"2012-05-18T12:17:04","date_gmt":"2012-05-18T11:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.oucs.ox.ac.uk\/adamweblearn\/?p=1594"},"modified":"2012-05-23T14:53:40","modified_gmt":"2012-05-23T13:53:40","slug":"novel-use-of-weblearns-sign-up-tool-by-npeu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs-dev.it.ox.ac.uk\/adamweblearn\/2012\/05\/novel-use-of-weblearns-sign-up-tool-by-npeu\/","title":{"rendered":"Novel use of WebLearn’s Sign-up tool by NPEU"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"NPEU<\/a>

NPEU Building (http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/manicstreetpreacher\/4465281573)<\/p><\/div>\n

The Clinical Trials Unit at the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit (NPEU CTU) recently decided to use WebLearn to help stream-line the administration of follow-up in a clinical trial. They commissioned a small amount of development of the web services interface to the Sign-up tool to provide integration with their appointments database. NPEU CTU contacted an external consultant to do this work for them.<\/p>\n

The NPEU CTU has a WebLearn site that will be used for booking two-year follow-up assessments for approximately 1400 infants who are participating in the I2S2 trial (a randomised controlled trial of iodine supplementation in preterm infants). The site will be accessed securely by a trial co-ordinator and two IT professionals from the NPEU CTU, and approximately seven clinical assessors located across the UK.<\/p>\n

Each appointment is made on the Microsoft Access I2S2 administrative database by the I2S2 Trial Co-ordinator and sent automatically to WebLearn using the newly developed Sign-up tool web services interface. WebLearn then generates an email notification which is sent to the assessor.<\/p>\n

The assessor is able to view details of the appointment using either a networked computer or a mobile phone. They also have the ability to accept or reschedule the bookings. Each assessor has their own link which presents their own appointments on a web page which can then be printed.<\/p>\n

A Schedule Tool in a separate WebLearn site will be used for assessors to mark days when they are not available. This calendar is superimposed on the assessments calendar to prevent booking \u201cconflicts\u201d. The co-ordinators and assessors are also able to see the assessment and annual leave bookings on their internal Outlook calendars using the recently developed \u201cPrivate URL\u201d service.<\/p>\n

This trial of using WebLearn in an NPEU CTU trial will hopefully lead to other beneficial developments in future.<\/p>\n

WebLearn has replaced a time-consuming manual email\/phone-based system without the need to invest significant sums of money in proprietary or bespoke software. It has allowed co-ordinators and assessors working in different organisations to work together securely, without compromising patient confidentiality. This would not have been possible without WebLearn.<\/p>\n

Author: \u00a0Stella Khenia (NPEU)<\/em><\/p>\n

Links<\/h2>\n