In a recent web article on Med-Tech Outlook, Edward Nevill Maltass, CIO at El Centro Medical Center wrote about the Genetics of Hospital Technology. He defined several challenges as it relates to hospitals and technology. Challenges referenced are:
As a vendor who works with a wide variety of healthcare facilities on complex technology systems, we see how complicated the marketplace has become. We spend a considerable amount of time early on to educate what is possible, and what that means for your goals and your facility. We ask questions because we want you to be an educated buyer on complex technology. The more you understand, the better decision you can make for your facility. Questions we hear regularly:
Where do I begin? Begin by starting to gather the information below, so you build a framework that helps give directional needs; i.e. maybe Corporate has standardized on a specific infrastructure already.
What are the various use cases (point solutions) that can be done? What do you want to achieve? What are you trying to fix? Start with the end in mind, and then build the system around what you want to achieve. Use cases we can help you with are:
Do I have any existing infrastructure that works with RTLS? If you have Nurse Call Cancel through Hill Rom or Rauland, then you have the beginning of an infrastructure already in place.
How important is location accuracy when selecting a staff assist/duress system? This is probably the most important question you need to answer when it comes to keeping staff safe.
What does “line of sight” and “flood the room” mean? Why does this matter? These two terms have to do with how technology communicates with the devices in the room or area.
Location based systems (RTLS) are expensive, how can we cut costs? Sure, sticker shock can and does exist if one is only looking at the bottom line. But with an enterprise RTLS system, it is important to understand that you are building a system that is futureproof and laying the groundwork for stacking additional use cases on the infrastructure. This is the point where one needs to understand their goals, now and in the future. We have seen orphaned systems because they do not scale. Purchased solely looking at the price, not the cost of ownership. Don’t get us wrong, investment dollars are tough to come by and need to be invested wisely, we understand that. And as a result, that is why we feel it is so important to help you and your team understand RTLS and what the goals are for the future.
I have several point solutions; can I somehow integrate them into one? Depends on the vendor with the systems you already have. We work with a wide variety of vendors on integrations. Let’s talk about what you have and what you want to do.
I hope this helps to open the door for discussions at your facility. What questions do you still have that I can help you with?
Source: http://bit.ly/2KEmWE1