Crestcare partners with Bluebird to advance infection control and antibiotic stewardship

This collaboration marks a significant step in Crestcare’s ongoing commitment to delivering world-class healthcare in rural and peri-urban communities through a multidisciplinary, team-based approach.

“Crestcare is deeply invested in ensuring that every patient, regardless of geography, receives the highest standard of care,” says Kit Wostenholm, CEO of Crestcare. “Partnering with Bluebird allows us to strengthen our infection prevention protocols and empower our clinical teams with real-time data and decision support tools. This is about smarter medicine, safer hospitals, and equitable access to excellence.”

Built from the ground up using the United States’ Centre for Disease Control antimicrobial stewardship guidelines, Bluebird is a mature, cloud-based solution that helps hospitals and doctors identify high-risk patients, reduce infection rates, and optimise antibiotic use. The system standardises clinical workflows, enabling hospitals to do more with fewer resources, a critical advantage in resource-constrained settings.

Bluebird’s intuitive interface and bedside iPad access allow doctors and nurses to view comprehensive patient data, track infection trends, and receive automated alerts. Remote access ensures that multidisciplinary teams – including pharmacists, infection control specialists, and attending physicians – can collaborate seamlessly, even across sites. Minimal IT infrastructure is required, making the system ideal for Crestcare’s decentralised footprint.

Dr Darryl Vine, medical director of Bluebird, adds: “Our technology is designed to support doctors in making timely, evidence-based decisions. By automating antibiograms, flagging transmission risks early, and guiding empiric therapy, Bluebird facilitates constructive engagement among care teams. It’s not about dictating treatment, but about empowering doctors with the right information to make faster, more informed decisions. We’re proud to support Crestcare’s mission to extend high-quality care to underserved regions.”

Wostenholm continues: “This means doctors have the option to use technology to ensure antibiotics are used in the most effective way possible. Bluebird looks at the lab results and prescribed treatment and highlights where adjustments might improve outcomes or reduce resistance risk.

“It's a collaborative tool that supports antimicrobial stewardship – using the right antibiotics, in the right amount for the right infection, in support of the clinical judgment of our doctors.”

The partnership will be phased in across Crestcare’s facilities at Cresctare Zoutpansberg Hospital in Limpopo, Crestcare Malmesbury Hospital in the Western Cape and Crestcare St Mary’s in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, with training and support provided by Intelligent Medical Systems, the company behind Bluebird.

Early implementation sites have already reported improved teamwork, reduced infection rates, and more appropriate antibiotic prescribing.