Just two months after Device Technologies drew up a COVID-19 disaster plan, its business changed dramatically. Demand from hospitals for its usual products – surgical instruments, orthopaedic implants, robotics and the like – plummeted as elective surgery was banned.

Adapting at speed

Instead, the company was deluged with orders for ventilators and personal protective equipment. “We shifted our business model extremely quickly,” says CEO Michael Trevaskis.

Fortunately, the rapid pivot was simplified by a decision taken three years earlier to transform Australia’s biggest independent supplier of medical technology into a digital leader in the healthcare sector.

Michelle Stewart, general manager of marketing and digital, headed the project, starting with the supply chain.

Using SAP’s Customer Experience platform, Device Technologies introduced a surgery booking portal, eliminating the need for phone calls and several data entry steps – instead allowing surgeons to input into an app what equipment they needed.

Putting patients first

After just one year in operation, the portal has saved more than 50,000 hours of administrative time. As well as reducing the risk of human error, it has freed up more than 100 sales staff across the surgical divisions of Device Technologies, allowing them to spend more time with surgeons improving patient outcomes.

“It puts patients ahead of paperwork,” says Stewart.

It has also allowed sales staff to input surgery bookings on the go on mobile devices rather than entering data after business hours.

The company’s next biggest change is an ecommerce platform, giving customers access to a digital catalogue of more than 70,000 products and the ability to track their purchases and deliveries anytime.

Total transparency

“We’re inviting them into the business with total transparency,” says Stewart, noting that a trial launch to a small group of customers shows they are three times more likely to research product details through the portal and are logging on outside business hours.

Trevaskis says the digital innovations will allow Device Technologies to continue to expand.

Five years ago, 80 per cent of its customer base was Australian hospitals and doctors. Now, the company supplies equipment to veterinary practices and aged care homes, as well as hospitals across South-East Asia.

“We couldn’t do this without technology; it’s far too labour intensive,” he says. “Health care has to evolve into more digitised services and COVID-19 has fast-tracked this.”

To discover more stories of 51ˇçÁ÷innovation in action, visit

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Created to support employees and combat fake news, the app will collate information from trustworthy sources including , and combine it with specific country data, local government guidance, travel information and relevant company policies, to provide localised information for users. It will be available free of charge to all 51ˇçÁ÷employees and any customers globally who have an 51ˇçÁ÷Cloud Platform Enterprise Agreement.

The app, which is accessible as a webpage or as an Apple iOS application, was launched by the 51ˇçÁ÷APJ Innovation Office. It was developed in association with 51ˇçÁ÷Global Conversational , Digital Labs, Global Health Management, HR and Qualtrics teams.

The Bridge-IT app will offer the following features:

• Data Platform –powered by 51ˇçÁ÷Cloud Platform, the data platform bridges information from trustworthy global and local sources, as well as specific country, government and company data to provide as accurate information as possible, in real time
• Chatbot – powered by 51ˇçÁ÷Conversational AI technology, the chatbot provides a user-friendly tool for questions and access to company specific FAQs or healthcare guidance
• Automated Guidance Tools – powered by Qualtrics, these personalised surveys span a range of topics for respondents to input their situation and be routed to appropriate resources based on their needs. This includes a COVID-19 symptoms survey, which provides tailored healthcare guidance and resources based on users answers about symptoms displayed
• Dashboard – provides visualisations of real time data, such as impacts of COVID-19 on supply and customer-based data, including public sentiment on 51ˇçÁ÷Analytics Cloud.

The app incorporates a standard set of data, including company policies, travel information, COVID-19 case numbers, health resources, and legislative updates, but can be adapted to include specific data or information as required. Additional functionality, including a ‘Digital Boardroom’ feature, is set to be rolled out in coming weeks.

One of the first 51ˇçÁ÷customers using the app, a global pharmaceuticals firm, has already rolled out the app for staff, including bespoke data on the number of COVID-19 cases searchable by hospital location. This helps employees at the firm to predict likely demand for medical supplies and respond accordingly.

“This app is one of several ways 51ˇçÁ÷is helping to fight COVID-19 across Asia,” said Scott Russell, President, 51ˇçÁ÷APJ. “The volume of important information on the pandemic from a huge variety of sources – including employers, the government and health authorities – can make it hard to keep up. Bridge-IT is designed to help guard against COVID-19 misinformation and help people stay on top of important updates in the simplest way possible, so they can focus on their health, happiness, and wellbeing.”

Damien Bueno, President and Managing Director, 51ˇçÁ÷ANZ, said: “I’m very proud of our regional Innovation Office – led by a team in Melbourne – for harnessing the power of data and developing a one-stop tool to provide accurate, corroborated, and trustworthy information,” said Mr Bueno.

“At this time of heightened uncertainty – and the anxiety and stress that it leads to – we hope the app will give our employees and customers some peace of mind, by delivering the information they need to know, when they need to know it.”

All data in the Bridge-IT app will be open and accessible so third parties can develop additional solutions.

To access the app, 51ˇçÁ÷employees can . A publicly accessible version of the app .

For 51ˇçÁ÷customers, please speak to your 51ˇçÁ÷account team to arrange access.

The post 51ˇçÁ÷Launches Free App to Cut Through Fake News on COVID-19 appeared first on 51ˇçÁ÷Australia & New Zealand News Center.