Are you innovating for innovation’s sake or innovating for value?

Innovation is one of those words trending high in all industries, not the least of which is healthcare. Healthcare industry trade publications are flush with headlines touting the latest innovations, promising returns in higher health outcomes, greater revenue streams or improved operating efficiency. But with hospitals’ thin margins and declining reimbursements, investment in hospital innovations must be balanced against their potential value.

“For TRL, innovation is a word that’s only used when there is a real value on the table,” notes Sy Granillo, Sales Manager, Healthcare Division at TRL. “For our healthcare customers, innovation helps them overcome the challenges of risk management, revenue and return on investment.”

TRL’s healthcare experts help hospital clients evaluate where and how to get the most value from their investments in innovation by focusing first on the hospital’s goals. “It is easy to get excited about the myriad of new ideas coming to market, and frankly it can be somewhat overwhelming to navigate,” says Granillo. “We help the client zero in on the hospital’s strategic vision–what they want to achieve- and then leverage our decades of experience and industry knowledge to identify what will best help them get there.”

With a complete spectrum of services from support to installation, to a dedicated in-house IT team, TRL delivers new technologies that help client partners receive true value. Some of the best returns on investment can be found in applying innovative technology to automate manual processes.

“We talk to our customers about how they can be smarter with their resources, mobilize communication and do more within restricted budgets,” says Granillo. By taking in all of the different perspectives, TRL identifies the solutions that best support initiatives to manage assets, process improvement and patient engagement.

TRL looks for solutions that are flexible and adaptable to maximize each dollar the hospital is investing. “We don’t want to necessarily put in a system to do just one thing,” he says.

Take, for example, a hospital whose goal is higher throughput from the emergency department. By implementing a real-time locator service (RTLS), the hospital can know how many people are in the ED, how long the wait times are, how many are in exam rooms, how long a doctor is in the exam room (and which one), and when and to which in-patient room the individual is admitted.

One hospital increased patient flow by 35 to 40 percent and doubled net revenue projections after implementing RTLS. “This technology is starting to take off in healthcare as hospitals try to become more efficient,” says Granillo. “The visibility to this information helps the hospital improve workflow. Saving even just a few minutes translates to more people being cared for in the ED, more potential hospital admissions and ultimately more revenue to the hospital.”

The flexibility of RTLS technology, however, makes it adaptable to an array of other uses as well – from tracking compliance with handwashing processes, to tracking equipment. That flexibility enhances the potential ROI from a single-purpose application to multiple end uses. For example, one hospital applied its RTLS system to immediately save $27,000 in capital expenditures and increased IV Pump utilization by 17 percent over six months. “The point of any new technology is to leverage the hospital’s investment, not only in better patient care, but also in staff efficiency,” says Granillo.

TRL’s ability to zero in on innovations that help a hospital improve processes is a key tenant of lean principles. The Lean Construction Institute notes that the healthcare organizations are actively pursuing lean process improvement, and with good reason as they seek greater efficiencies. “I’ve read lean described in part as flexible regimentation, through which the root causes of problems are uncovered, and the necessary changes are made to optimize processes,” notes Granillo. “We are well-versed in lean principles at TRL, and that enhances the value we bring to the table. As we work with hospitals to improve both outcomes and operational efficiency, our value is in applying our broad understanding of the marketplace to help customers maximize their investment in innovation.”

© 2020, TRL Systems, Inc.