He explained that the online stock-control database allows the administrators to check stock levels and replenish when necessary. The recent shortage in bandages at St Luke’s, he said, came about because there was an abnormal surge in usage at the time about which the administrators were unaware.

The intranet service actually began in 1999 on the initiative of an IT-skilled, enthusiastic nurse and served as a sort of noticeboard.

It still serves as a notice board but has now been greatly upgraded to include, among other things, news items relevant to members of staff. Mater Dei CEO Kenneth Grech detailed the new features and highlighted their benefits. He said that the publication of circulars and memos on the system saved the hospital a large amount of paper, not to mention the time spent in printing and distribution.

He drew attention to the fact that the hospitals now have some 4,000 employees and require considerable logistics to manage. He gave the directory system on the intranet as an example, saying that before it was impossible to have an updated version of an internal phone-book because people often moved office or were on long leave or sick leave.

The human resource (HR) facility made the hospitals the first organisation to have a fully electronic HR system. Dr Grech also announced that they will soon be adding some automated administrative functions such as requests for vacation leave, rosters and patients’ medical records.