THE lives of nurses and midwives in Mid Devon’s hospitals is set to be revolutionised after the Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust secured nearly £400,000 in national funding to give them modern hand-held computers to care for patients.

The Trust won the money from the Nursing Technology Fund launched by Prime Minister David Cameron and led by NHS England.

The Samsung Galaxy tab-lets, which come with a digital pen, will be used by nursing staff at North Devon Dis-trict Hospital and the 17 community hospitals the Trust manages in Exeter, North, Mid and East Devon.

The technology will enable staff to quickly and easily record and review key clinical information at patients’ bedsides.

The aim is to reduce paperwork and free up staff so they can spend more quality time with patients and imp-rove care.

Bev Cox, assistant director of nursing who is leading the Trust project, said: “We were ecstatic when we heard our application was successful.

“This will offer our nursing staff a great opportunity to lead the way in using modern technology to support them to deliver safe, high-quality, patient-centred care.

“These mobile devices can be used at the patient’s bedside, putting valuable information at a nurse’s or midwife’s fingertips, and allowing them to input and access data electronically at the point of care.

“Staff will be able to work more efficiently and flexibly, and spend more face-to-face time with the people they care for, ultimately benefitting our patients.”

The Trust’s £388,700 award was the 28th highest in the country of 86 given out by the Nursing Technology Fund.