Health Toolbox
Introduction
Health Toolbox is an award-winning UK based website set up and run by NHS doctors. It is a collaborative local knowledge resource for healthcare professionals that deserve a safe induction. It acts as a wikipedia of how to get stuff done in hospitals. Each hospital has its own domain, co-ordinated by a lead editor who reviews the information, and a senior clinician who provides support and continuity.
What is Health Toolbox?
Health Toolbox is a secure online information resource set up by Postgraduate Doctors in Training (PGDiT) to help better orientate themselves with their hospital and department. Including contact numbers, referral methods, ward handbooks & guidelines.
Why does it matter?
Easily accessible information at local level ensures that healthcare professionals can be efficient and effective in carrying out their role. This in turn has positive impacts on patient safety as well as education and training.
Find out the phone number you need and avoid the wait at switchboard. Then dial it directly from your phone
Quickly access hospital specific information such as how to make referrals to different specialities or how request investigations. Find a 'survival guide' handbook for your job written by another clinician to help you hit the ground running.
What can it do?
Toolbox is estimated to save 40 minutes per PGDiT per day. At a typical NHS Trust with 60 users, this could save £200,000 per hospital every year.
What information is Health Toolbox for?
- Handbooks written by doctors in training for their job and speciality.
- Contact details, e.g., phone numbers, bleep numbers and emails.
- Local information, e.g., how to make speciality referrals, or know how on requesting investigations.
Some trusts have their clinical guidelines on their toolbox, some have teaching videos and others share teaching calendars.
Which Yorkshire and Humber trusts are currently using Health Toolbox?
- Airedale NHS Foundation Trust
- Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust
- Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
- Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
- Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust
- Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (restricted)
- Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust (restricted)
- Northern Lincolnshire and Goole (restricted)
- Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust (restricted)
- South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
- York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
How do I access Health Toolbox?
You can register for a free account on the Health Toolbox Website, using your work email address. Once you have an account, you can access Health Toolbox by downloading the app or via the Health Toolbox website. To download the mobile app, you need a recent iOS™ or Android™ device.
The app downloads the content of your hospital toolbox and stores it for future reading, even when offline. When your device becomes online, the app reconnects to the server and is updated to the latest version.
Can I contribute to my Trust's Toolbox?
Yes! Anyone can contribute, either by sending feedback or by becoming editors. Becoming an editor is about creating and maintaining a local medical knowledge base and communicating with teams across the trust. Some trusts estimate for this work to be acceptable as a Quality Improvement Project for Postgraduate Doctors in Training so it’s worth asking your trust if you’re interested in becoming an editor of the Toolbox, as editors are approved by local administrators. If approved, you will be given editing rights to the trust's site and its pages.
You can request to become an editor by contacting your Health Toolbox administrator or clinical champion. Alternatively, you can submit an online request to become and editor which will be sent to them for approval.
Certificates can be provided for user contributions though these need to be requested from your Health Toolbox administrator.
Security and Data Protection
Health Toolbox is password protected, using industry standard encryption and is compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Only approved clinicians have access to view and, where applicable, edit content on the site.
Health Toolbox or Dr Toolbox?
You may have heard of or seen Dr Toolbox. Originally, Health Toolbox was named Dr Toolbox but this was changed to be more inclusive and to reflect the needs of all hospital staff not just doctors!
Frequently Asked Questions
For answers to frequently asked questions, please see the Health Toolbox website.
Contact
If you have any queries about Health Toolbox, please contact the Health Toolbox team directly: support@dr-toolbox.com.