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JournalBenjamin Haaske, IT Systems Administrator | Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital

“Brainlab O.R. integration allows fast access to patient data and automatic pre-load of patient data and images each day in the O.R. We were able to very easily integrate Brainlab software into our own server infrastructure, allowing us to autonomously monitor and maintain our 32 new operating rooms.”

About Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital – Großhadern Campus

  • Two campuses in Munich: Downtown and Grosshadern (opened in 1974)

  • New O.R. Center opened in 2014 at Grosshadern

  • Nearly 10,000 hospital staff

  • 2,060 beds

  • Over 40,000 surgeries per year

  • 95,000 in-patients, 440,000 out-patients annually

  • More than 6,000 medical students

Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital is the second largest university hospital in Germany. The newly-constructed O.R. Center at Grosshadern was opened in 2014 and is among the largest and most modern in Europe with 32 in-patient and four out-patient O.R.s, a centralized sterilization unit, 70 intensive care beds and an interdisciplinary emergency unit. In addition to providing optimal patient treatment, the hospital also plays an important role as a leading teaching and research institution.

Challenges

  • Only one PC was present in the O.R. for both documentation and access to patient images for viewing and editing

  • O.R. was an isolated area with no live O.R. streaming available for teaching purposes

  • Patient images were available to the surgeon only as print-outs and not editable in the O.R.

  • Photo and video documentation was only possible through individual devices (endoscope, microscope), with resulting data only exportable via USB and not directly to the HIS system

Goals

  • Build a centralized O.R. center with standardized equipment that is easy to use and maintain for all users

  • Enable fast access to patient data and images independently from regular O.R. documentation system

  • Automatically archive generated patient data (videos and screenshots) in central hospital archive

  • Enable video streaming outside of the O.R. for teaching purposes

O.R. Configuration

  • 32 Buzz systems

  • 5 Curve Navigation systems

  • 3 Origin Server Software as central data node between O.R. and hospital archives

  • Elements DICOM Viewer for intraoperative viewing and planning

  • Documentation software

  • 3rd party integrated conferencing software

  • Elements Image Fusion, SmartBrush

  • Fibertracking

Highlights

  • Flexible server integration through 3 Brainlab Origin Server software installed on virtual machines, monitored directly by hospital IT

  • Fast and easy access to patient data in the O.R. and automatic, time-saving availability of data in the morning

  • Straightforward surgical documentation, including direct export of images and videos to hospital archive

  • Procedures can be observed through the Buzz screen, ensuring that the sterile field stays untouched and allowing students and staff to optimally view live surgeries