Tackling Overcrowding in Hospitals: How Smart Crowding Is Changing Healthcare

Team Smart Crowding: Thomas Ims, Dr. Øystein Evjen Olsen, Tor Einar Enne, Stein Åge Davidsen, Aslaug Skauen, Kristian Krile

Tackling Overcrowding in Hospitals: How Smart Crowding Is Changing Healthcare

Hospital overcrowding delays care and increases patient risk. Smart Crowding, developed at Stavanger University Hospital, provides real-time decision support to manage patient flow, reduce staff burnout, and improve safety.

Hospital overcrowding has emerged as one of the most critical challenges facing healthcare systems around the world. Across Europe, North America, Australia, and Africa, overcrowded emergency departments (EDs) lead to delayed care, patient harm, and in extreme cases, unnecessary deaths.

Overcrowding, especially in critical care settings, is a well-recognised global issue. Studies show that for every 82 patients delayed more than 6-8 hours in an ED, one additional death occurs. For critically ill patients, occupancy levels over 92.5% can increase mortality rates by a factor of seven. In response to this urgent need, Smart Crowding was developed to help hospitals manage patient flow, prevent overcrowding, and ultimately save lives.

Introducing a smarter way: Smart Crowding

Smart Crowding began at Stavanger University Hospital, where Dr. Øystein Evjen Olsen and his colleagues experienced firsthand the chaos of overcrowded wards. Realising that something had to change, they developed Smart Crowding—a hospital management solution designed to provide real-time decision support, giving frontline staff the tools to manage patient flow more effectively.

"Together with a dedicated team, we developed a tool that gives key staff transparency and real-time information on bottlenecks, resource utilisation, and patient flow. This allows them to make intelligent decisions that directly improve patient safety," says Dr. Olsen.

Optimising patient care and reducing staff burnout

One of Smart Crowding’s key strengths is its ability to reduce staff burnout by supporting informed, real-time decision-making. The platform provides easy-to-interpret charts and indicators that empower healthcare professionals to quickly respond to emerging issues. This level of support ensures timely and effective treatment for patients while also fostering trust between patients, staff, and hospital leaders.

Tablet displaying Smart Crowding's interface

The UK perspective: overcrowding in the NHS

The NHS, like healthcare systems worldwide, has been grappling with overcrowding for years. Bed shortages, delayed patient discharges, and overwhelmed emergency departments have all contributed to dangerous delays in care.

Smart Crowding’s Plan for High Activity (PHA) is designed to address these issues by helping hospitals better allocate resources and reduce patient wait times. It is already garnering considerable interest from hospitals across the UK, with several prominent healthcare providers have recognised it as a promising solution for managing patient flow and reducing the strain on staff and resources.

Proven results in action

The impact of Smart Crowding is already being felt in hospitals that have adopted the system. At Stavanger University Hospital, where Smart Crowding was first developed, the platform has already made a significant impact. Now used across 36 wards, it has led to faster patient care and happier staff. The platform’s ability to provide real-time insights into hospital activity has been instrumental in ensuring that patients receive the right care at the right time.

Looking ahead: new investments and growth

Smart Crowding’s continued growth is being supported by two new investors from Oslo and Stavanger, enabling the company to expand its presence in the UK and beyond. This investment will allow Smart Crowding to scale its operations, ensuring that more hospitals can benefit from this groundbreaking technology.

"We are now focused on working with healthcare providers in areas of the world experiencing the greatest need, such as the UK, where overcrowding has placed tremendous strain on the system," says Stein Åge Davidsen, Smart Crowding CEO and investor. "We believe our solution can play a critical role in alleviating that pressure and improving patient care."

Arkiv