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Health Data & IT

Workstation on Wheels

A workstation on wheels (WOW), sometimes called a computer on wheels, is a mobile cart holding a computer, monitor, and often medication or supplies that staff roll between patients. It enables bedside documentation and barcode verification across pre-op and recovery bays.

What is a workstation on wheels?

A workstation on wheels (WOW), also called a computer on wheels, is a mobile cart that carries a computer, monitor, and frequently a barcode scanner, and sometimes secured medication or supply storage. Staff roll it from patient to patient so the chart travels with them.

Most are height-adjustable and battery-powered, letting a clinician document while standing at the bedside without being tethered to a fixed station. The cart effectively brings the electronic record to wherever the patient is.

How is it used in an ASC?

Workstations on wheels enable documentation, order entry, and barcode-based verification at the point of care, which supports both efficiency and patient-safety checks. Scanning a wristband against a medication or order at the bedside helps confirm the right patient and the right action.

In an ambulatory surgery center, a WOW can move between pre-operative and recovery bays as patient volume shifts through the day. That mobility lets a small staff cover changing assignments without relying on a station fixed to one bay.

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