Equipment Loans Management System


Ethitec's ELMS2 is a comprehensive, proven software solution that supports the efficient management of Community Equipment Services, Wheelchair Services, and other areas of NHS and Social Care supplies provision, on either a fully integrated or stand-alone basis. The solution has a well-established user-base, an active user-group and very importantly, is supported by a large and highly experienced team who drive the software forward and strive to ensure the satisfaction of our customers.

ELMS2 is constantly improving and broadening its scope, and it can be difficult to do the system justice with a written description. That is why we would be delighted to demonstrate the system to you and your colleagues onsite, without cost or obligation.

Evolution built on stability

Innovation built on experience

Background and History

Ethitec and ELMS2 has quietly and consistently delivered on its promises


The first version of ELMS2 was written as a bespoke application for the British Red Cross Community Equipment Service, Leicester, in 1990. ELMS2 has seen a lot of change since then. We've gone through the introduction of Windows technology, the ‘fully equipped' report, the introduction of barcoding and handheld scanners, the integration of NHS and Local Authority equipment services, a national framework for CES management systems, the adoption of internet based technology, integration of equipment services with wheelchair services, the increased use of mobile computing, and more recently, the transforming community equipment and wheelchair services project. Sometimes we've pioneered. On other occasions we've waited for the dust to settle and offered a more considered approach. However, during this period, one thing has remained consistent. Ethitec and ELMS2 has quietly and consistently delivered on its promises.

With a minimum of fuss, we have striven to ensure the satisfaction of our customers. And that is why Ethitec have an open policy with regard to customer references. We encourage prospective customers to speak to any of our sites about their satisfaction with our system and the quality of the professional services which we deliver. Our customers are typically the best salespeople that we have.

After nearly 30 years of continuous high quality development, our commitment to keeping ELMS2 at the forefront of technology supporting CES and Wheelchair Services is stronger than ever. Changes in legislation and reporting requirements have always been incorporated into the system, and we continue to ensure that ELMS2 makes the best use of available hardware and communication technology. We listen to our individual customers and our User Groups, and ensure that the enhancement suggestions they make, along with the ideas that come from our own experts, are developed, tested, and deployed, by our in-house development team.

ELMS2, built upon an unrivalled level of experience in the field, today delivers innovative yet proven leading edge technology to run your equipment and wheelchair services. We may not make much noise, but our customers are happy to confirm that during the continuous evolution of ELMS2, stability is at the heart of everything that we do.

ELMS2 Features

Take a look below at some of the great features and benefits that ELMS2 has to offer:

Flexibility

When you’ve been working with equipment related services for as long as we have, you know that while they can appear very similar in terms of their headline operational activity, they’re actually very different when you get to understand how they work at a local level. It has always been a key objective for Ethitec to ensure that ensure that our ELMS2 system is fitted to the way that our customers wish to work, rather than forcing alien working practices upon them.

A scalable, modular and flexible structure makes ELMS2 easy to configure to suit the local specification of any size of store or service. A wealth of system parameters and settings allow it to be tuned to meet local variances in working practice, offering logical workflows, while still providing the necessary controls.

Flexibility

When you’ve been working with equipment related services for as long as we have, you know that while they can appear very similar in terms of their headline operational activity, they’re actually very different when you get to understand how they work at a local level. It has always been a key objective for Ethitec to ensure that ensure that our ELMS2 system is fitted to the way that our customers wish to work, rather than forcing alien working practices upon them.

A scalable, modular and flexible structure makes ELMS2 easy to configure to suit the local specification of any size of store or service. A wealth of system parameters and settings allow it to be tuned to meet local variances in working practice, offering logical workflows, while still providing the necessary controls.

Paperless Working

With NHS led organisations in particular having a paperless target by 2020, it is important to note that ELMS2 offers the opportunity for full paperless working right across CES and Wheelchair Service operations from referral through to equipment issue and return. The system will give a CES or Wheelchair Service support for managing electronic referrals, a full electronic patient record, electronic ordering and invoicing when communicating with their supplier community, and controlled, secure, online ordering functionality for their prescriber community. Within the store, ELMS2 provides real-time electronic stock management, servicing, and picking functionality that is fully integrated with ordering and distribution operations. This extends out in the community to allow paperless recording of delivery / collection / service related activity. Combine this with the use of electronic signature capture, QR codes, surveys, and automated SMS and Email Communication with Clients and Prescribers alike, and you’ll soon be wondering why you’ve always consumed so much paper!

Mobile Computing

Mobile Computing is at the heart of ELMS2. Our innovative ELMS2app allows use of Android and iOS based technologies to enable offline and online management of distribution and collection activity, stock movements, and servicing / repair activity, both instore and out in the Community. Your prescriber community will also wish to embrace the ELMS2 Online Ordering Module, which has a responsive design optimised for smart-phones and smaller screen devices, and quick workflows to support use in satellite stores. Managers on the move will also appreciate the easy authorisation process that the Module offers.

Compliance with Key Standards

ELMS2 is strategically positioned to ensure your ongoing compliance with key NHS standards. Our NHS e-RS (Choose and Book) accreditation offers mechanisms for GPs and to directly “choose and book appointments” for patients and to submit electronic referrals all via approved integration to the National Spine. NHS e-RS is key to NHS England's vision of offering patients a choice of place, date and time for their first appointment, and of eliminating paper processes around the management of appointments and patient records. As a by-product of this, ELMS2 also offers an interface to the NHS Personal Demographics Service (PDS), a national authoritative source of patient demographics data for the whole of the NHS. ELMS2 is also guarantees our customers full Community Information Dataset (CIDS) capability and support for Referral to Treatment (RTT) Reporting.

Open 'Reference Site' Policy

In choosing a software solution, it makes good sense to look at the whole package offered by a supplier, and not just the system itself. When Ethitec delivers ELMS2, we consider ourselves to be a long-term partner in a project rather than just a supplier. We hope to be evaluated on the quality of our training and consultancy services, our technical and user support, our documentation, our hand-holding and responsiveness, and our years of experience, as well as the undoubted quality of our software. Our ever-growing list of satisfied customers, many of whom have been with us for years, gives testimony to our approach to 'after sales' support and our ability to deliver on our promises. We are happy for prospective customers to approach any and many of our customers - we do not have ‘lead' or preferred reference sites.

Reporting

A computer system is only as useful as the information it can deliver, and the reporting capability of a software system is a key evaluation factor in determining its suitability. Management information is one of the main strengths of ELMS2. Standard reports exist with such a wide range of parameters available that they literally run into the hundreds. Reports may be run on demand, or using the flexible report scheduler, they may be scheduled to execute at predetermined times and frequencies. All known legislative, nationally required reports are included as standard, and all enhancements and amendments caused by changes in legislation etc are incorporated into new releases free of charge or customers sites with an active maintenance contract, which again helps to ensure future proofing for our customers. Dashboards (easy to read interfaces showing representations of current statuses and historical trends with graphical presentation of summaries, key trends, comparisons, and exceptions) are also made available to ELMS2 users.

Integration

Ethitec will make sure that your ELMS2 system is integrated with other key systems and services in your business. We have significant experience of developing seamless third party links to other Healthcare, Social care, Approved Repairer, Gazetteer, Postcoding, and Financial applications, using uni-directional, bi-directional, real-time, batch fed and drip-fed links. Progress, the technology behind ELMS2, is a powerful RDBMS and 4GL which provides support for various communication protocols, interfaces, and standards.

Local or Cloud Based Hosting

Ethitec can provide ELMS2 as either a locally hosted or externally hosted solution, and the system is proven in both forms. Ethitec do not have a preferred approach - our intention is to allow the customer to make the decision, based on their local IT infrastructure, support, and financial situation. If you are planning on hosting the system locally, you'll be reassured that ELMS2 is built on the Progress RDBMS and 4GL, which will run on a wide variety of standard hardware and operating systems.

Importantly, for a system the size of ELMS2, the Progress database requires no day-to-day technical administration and is fully supported by Ethitec. If you'd like us to arrange the hosting of the system via the Cloud, you'll be reassured to know that Ethitec have entered into partnership with Europe's most successful managed hosting company, Rackspace, allowing us to offer their ISO27001 accredited secure infrastructure to our customers.

CECOPS Approved Software

ELMS2 has been granted CECOPS Approved Software Status for use in CES and Wheelchair Services. CECOPS is an independent, not for profit social enterprise, aiming to raise the standard of disability equipment and other assistive technology related services across the UK, and beyond.

ELMS2 for Other Services

In addition to Community Equipment and Wheelchair Services, ELMS2 is a powerful software solution that today supports the efficient running of many other areas of NHS and Social Care supplies provision. Today, ELMS2 is being used to manage Prosthetic, Orthotic, Continence, Telecare, Assistive Technology, Medical Device, Community Alarm, and Environmental Control Services, either on an integrated or stand-alone basis.

Practitioners can manage the triage of referrals into their service, manage clinics and waiting lists, and schedule new appointments and follow-ups using the powerful multi-resource Appointment module. As a patient-centric system that can support a full Electronic Patient Record (EPR), ELMS2 allows assessment, clinical, and staff activity data can be collated in accordance with local practice.

The purchasing, management, distribution, and collection of stock are key components of the core ELMS2 module. Deliveries, services, handovers, visits, and repairs can all be scheduled and recorded. External contractors (such as third party repairers) are also catered for, and they can be given direct, controlled, access to ELMS2, or Ethitec can provide electronic links to their systems using modern integration technologies such as XML, helping you to monitor and manage their performance.

Don't just take our word for it!

Head over to our Testimonials page to read what our customers have to say about us...

If you want to know more about what ELMS2 can do, or more importantly what ELMS2 can do for you, get in touch by using our contact form or giving us a call.