Patient safety and protection, and optimal patient care, are the goals of any healthcare facility. Essential and reliable communication systems allow information to get to the right people at the right time and facilitate rapid response and better overall care. Good communication is also essential in emergency notification and response. Here’s how healthcare facilities use emergency notification systems to facilitate excellent patient care and improve staff communication and efficiency:

1. Mass notification & alerts
2. Push button alerts & custom paging
3. Hands-free paging
4. Patient tracking & wander management
5. Automatic door locks & egress

1. Mass Notification & Alerts

Mass notification systems are essential in emergencies. Whether through overhead speaker announcements, mobile alerts, and more, mass notification systems get the necessary information to everyone who needs it in an emergency situation.

In healthcare facilities, this can range from Code Blue situations, staff attack alarms, etc. that need to go to specific people or groups of people to facility-wide public address announcements that need to go to everyone. Notification and communications standards are components of an emergency plan, and mass notification systems can help ensure they are followed in a crisis.

Effective emergency notifications cut down on confusion, limit panic and the spread of panic, facilitate immediate response, and are essential in emergency situations. The benefits of mass notification systems include getting more accurate information to the right people, wherever they are, across technologies.

Plus, they’re customizable for your needs so you can make sure that everyone who needs to be informed is informed and has accurate information. These systems can also integrate with other components for better communication. For example, emergency messages can override digital signage during events requiring facility evacuation to add visual communication to auditory announcements. This is how mass notification systems fit into modern emergency response.

2. Push Button Alerts & Custom Paging

Nurse call systems improve patient safety by improving communications, shortening response times, and more. Push button alerts are some of the most common wearables and devices for facilitating nurse calls and paging staff.

In addition to push-button alerts, healthcare facilities can also use custom paging alerts and parameters to combat alarm fatigue and further improve efficiency, especially in emergencies. Configuring paging and alerts keeps sensitive announcements contained to only the staff that needs to receive them and still allows for broader overhead announcements in other cases. Implementing the right secure messaging system can help facilitate better custom paging and alerts.

Paging procedures can also be customized to designated zones to only be heard in specific areas and programmed by the type and urgency of the alert. These are considerations for overhead paging systems and communication processes. This allows for more efficient communication across the board, whether it’s for an emergency or a less urgent request. Not only does this improve rapid response in emergency situations, but it can also help reduce false alarms and improve staff efficiency across day-to-day check-ins as well.

3. Hands-Free Paging

Healthcare is often very hands-on, which means effective communication cannot rely only on messaging that has to be accessed via coming into physical contact with a device. Intercom features on talkback devices allow hands-free communication and paging via stationary or mobile speakers. Not only can this facilitate essential communication across situations, but it can also reduce the risk of contamination or the spread of illness in delicate situations or environments.

4. Patient Tracking & Wander Management

Real-time patient locating and automated alerts are essential components of effective wander management systems. Emergency notification is an important element of protecting patients, especially in the case of patients with dementia or Alzheimer’s who are prone to wandering.

Advanced features allow you to set up zones with geofencing and assign temporary locations to allow residents to have more independence. Additionally, staff are sent emergency notifications via alerts that are triggered should a resident wander outside of the designated area unauthorized. These can be key components in a wander prevention plan in healthcare facilities that provide patient protection while also improving their quality of life.

5. Automatic Door Locks & Egress

Access control and egress are important in an emergency. Emergency notification systems can be used in healthcare facilities to lock down an area or facilitate egress, depending on what is required for an emergency situation. In evacuation scenarios, emergency notification can unlock egress devices and other normally secured doors that should be unlocked in an emergency to allow for faster, more efficient evacuation.

In the case of infant protection, access to and from a maternity ward can be locked down to prevent infant abduction. With the use of mother-infant tags and matching, escalating alerts can be triggered when a mismatch occurs, when an infant gets too close to an exit door or is moved outside of authorized designated zones, and more. These are all ways hospitals can enhance their infant protection systems.

Upgrade and Integrate Your Healthcare Communication Systems With NEPPS

This is how healthcare facilities use emergency notification systems and the ways these systems help improve patient care, staff communication, and more. If you need to update or upgrade your healthcare security solution, contact NEPPS at 1-800-736-1456.