To Improve Patient Outcomes — and Experience — Get Smart!
With human life hanging in the balance, hospital personnel can’t afford to make mistakes. Innovations in medical technology have progressed by leaps and bounds, but there remains plenty of room for improvement — particularly in the accurate recording and communication of vital patient information.
Low-tech “solutions” cause big problems
Data visibility has always been a challenge in healthcare. Popular methods of tracking patient data — dry erase boards and paper precaution flags — are problematic and prone to error. These low-tech “solutions” keep patient data siloed, and even some high-tech systems don’t communicate well with others. When data isn’t available when and where it’s needed, vital updates to patient information can be miscommunicated — or missed entirely. Manual communication methods are inefficient in fast-paced clinical environments, and when data is missing, out of date, mis- or uncommunicated, or communicated in fragments, fast-paced can quickly become chaotic — with patients, and clinicians, suffering the consequences.
Low-tech solutions silo data and are too easily altered or misread. Multicolored precaution flags go missing, dry erase boards are erased to soon — or not soon enough — and both are prone to accidental changes or mistakes. An ideal solution would integrate seamlessly with existing technology, be easy to understand, difficult to accidentally alter, and share accurate patient information when and where it is needed.
Provider solutions
Healthcare providers need reliable systems for sharing patient information with one another. Strategically placed smartboards — in nurse’s stations, inside and outside of patient rooms, and in treatment areas — allow the latest information to be recorded instantly and accurately and easily shared among providers and treatment locations. Patient vitals aren’t subject to misunderstandings caused by hasty handwriting. Connecting smartboard technology to a mobile app allows for instant updates, clinician to patient video conferencing from anywhere, easy emergency contact, and universal awareness among all a patient’s care providers. Mobile connectivity takes healthcare to whole new levels of efficiency and efficacy with critical patient data literally at provider fingertips wherever they are.
Interactive patient solutions
Patients and their loved ones also need access to updated healthcare information, and smartboards are the solution for them as well. Patient room smartboards give patients access to the information they need to understand and engage with their own care. In-room smartboards can be used to keep patients informed and invested in their health. Prescribed educational content, delivered straight to their smartboard, can answer patient questions about their condition and let them know what to expect from treatment. Live video interpreter services, including sign language, on in-room patient smartboards prevent miscommunication between clinicians, the patient, and their loved ones. Encouraging patients’ active interest in their care and treatment increases their knowledge, decreases anxiety, and results in better patient outcomes.
Waiting room smartboards keep patients’ loved ones apprised of their status, such as whether they can have visitors or are out of their room for treatment or testing. Access to this information keeps loved ones in the loop while respecting patient privacy and further easing the anxiety associated with hospital care.
Vizabli ACES smartboard solutions
Vizabli’s Acute Care Engagement Solution (ACES) brings together data from all a facility’s clinical systems — including EHR, Nurse Call, RTLS, smart beds, vitals monitors, and others — and distributes it in real-time to interactive, touchscreen smartboards and mobile apps. It keeps providers informed with accurate, updated patient information accessible when and where they need it — streamlining clinical workflows and improving patient outcomes.
Patient door and in-room smartboards allow clinical staff to update medical data instantly without the confusion error-prone manual systems can cause. In-room smartboards also give patients access to their condition and treatment information and can deliver educational content to keep patients, and their loved ones, informed and engaged in their care.
Waiting room smartboards let loved ones know the latest regarding patient status and location, and mobile connectivity apps keep providers up to date and patients in touch with their loved ones. Vizabli’s ACES incorporate specialized software for clinical healthcare environments, integrate and communicate easily with existing technology, and feature a flexible, customizable touchscreen user interface.
Innovative medical technology is a hallmark of hospital care, but the way patient data is handled and shared is outdated at best. Dry erase boards, laminated paper signs, and multicolored precaution flags carry too much risk. Low-tech approaches also inhibit critical information access and communication. With ACES, one of the potential risks of patient care — mistakes caused by miscommunication — is minimized for improved patient outcomes and a better patient experience.
TRL Systems is proud to partner with Vizabli to deliver ACES smartboard technology to your healthcare space. Contact sgranillo@TRLSystems.com to learn more.