Things To Consider When Choosing a Nurse Call System

What is a Nurse Call System?

Urgent situations arising in hospitals, care homes, residential homes where patients or residents need help from the medical worker very quickly – is very natural and expected. Whether it’s an emergency or a routine call for help, nurse call systems remind the nurses to visit the patient quickly.

In the landscape of today’s medical scenario, the integration of a nurse call system can be a lifeline, and careful thought around its selection will help ensure it’s as effective as possible. With an integrated nurse call system, patients can enjoy higher-quality healthcare without tension.

This comprehensive guide will take you through every critical step of choosing a suitable nurse call system.

1. Estimated budget as per your requirement

Before choosing a nurse calling system, you need to identify the requirements at a very micro level. Because there are so many departments and personnel involved, this gadget will positively impact operational procedures. You have to choose the device that meets the requirements the most.

First, identify the geographical location, organizational size, patient demographic of the medical facility to install the nurse call system.

Secondly, have a conversation with all the workers of every department, like – clinical, IT, transport, environmental services, radiology, pharmacy, facility management, to know their requirements and take on the nurse call system. This is very important because you need to identify each team’s unique needs, preferences, resources, and areas for quality improvement.

The Nurse Call System will be there for at least a decade in a any medical establishment post installation.

Along with checking the functionality and quality, it is also essential to calculate the required commercials for your nurse call implementation and maintenance while making the purchase. Although, many systems are customizable to meet the organizations unique needs.

Finally, narrow down your selections based on each team’s top priorities while lowering costs where necessary by skipping features or add-ons that aren’t as important to the stakeholders.

2. Expected usage of the device

Know what you exactly expect from the new nurse calling system. Your desired goals should be realistic, achievable, and measurable. So, set the KPIs accordingly.

Nurse Calling system comes with some of the features, like –

● •Patient care tracking allows your institution to measure whether nurses respond to calls by providing care to patients and improves staff responsibility.
● State-of-the-art technology with intuitive and simple-to-use solutions that enable tailored care
● Improved service delivery through data gathering, organization, and maintenance
You can fix some of the KPIs you can set like:

❖ • Improving patient safety
❖ • Higher patient satisfaction level
❖ • Reduced noise levels
❖ • Faster response to patients

You can conclude that you have achieved the ROI if all the KPIs mentioned are met or exceeded.

3. Take inventory into the account

A nurse call system should function on the existing technologies in a frictionless manner to enhance productivity. You must understand your organizational requirements and goals to properly implement the device.

Before initiating the implementation, appoint dedicated project management to be involved in all processes.

Audit the existing infrastructure to identify the loopholes, like – outdated technologies, components that need replacement, and lacking resources. And then bring in solutions that will continue to be used during an upgrade or investment in new technologies.

Some of the notable components that need to be inspected –

● Electronic Medical Records (EMR)
● Mobile devices
● Medical devices
● Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS)

Maintain a record of missing items and be sure to fill in those gaps before selecting a nurse call system. You will have a smooth nurse calling system implementation without any hassle by this process.

4. Field Testing of the device

Now, sit with your IT department to determine the requirements of these technologies. It is very vital to know if the nurse call systems you are looking to integrate can function smoothly with your existing infrastructure or not.

You must choose a system that integrates easily with your existing technologies so that the entire system can be easy to maintain and eliminate unnecessary workflows. A robust internal mechanism between a nurse call system and your existing infrastructure creates safe practices, chances for improvement, and a good return on investment.

Choose systems that can be expanded or upgraded as per the changing patient and staff requirements.

5. Exploring different variants

You must look at the options available in the market. Case studies, customer evaluations, peer recommendations, trade shows, and healthcare technology events can all help you figure out which call system is best for your facility.

There are majorly 3 types of nurse call systems, including –

● Basic nurse call systems,
● Wireless nurse call systems
● Wired nurse call systems

Wired nurse call systems are considerably easier to maintain than wireless systems and support a two-way intercom between patients and nurses. However, they come at a higher cost and cause patient disruptions during their installation.
6. Installation Strategy making

After you are decided on the model, sit with your vendor to make the installation plan. This step is vital for implementing the plan to ensure all prerequisites and goals are met.

The implementation plan should include a realistic completion date to provide a smoother roll-out with fewer complaints, modes of inter-group communication, proper WBS, and a list of immediate objections that need to be removed.

7. Training, Support & Service

If you want to get the most out of the new system, you’ll need to train and assist your employees once it’s installed. Without proper training and support, your employees are more likely to reject utilizing the new call system, making it more challenging to fulfill the objectives you set when installing it.

Choose the Nurse Call Systems wisely –

Whether you are responsible for a care home, nursing home, or hospital, nurse call systems can literally be a lifeline, and careful thought around its selection will help ensure it’s as effective as possible.

In today’s modern world, especially the post-pandemic situation, Nurse Call Systems in hospital have proven to be a brilliant medium for your patients or residents to contact you when they need help.

Installation of a proper nurse call system strengthens your medical facility to deliver better care to your patients by meeting their needs in an extended manner. Going for the installation of a Nurse Call System can be a complex task for many people, but the points mentioned above will guide you through the process of ensuring that your purchased system meets most of your projected goals.

Author

Rintu Biswas