How Nurse Call Systems Can Improve Employee Efficiency

One of the leading complaints in assisted living facilities is the reliance on old, outdated technology. Assisted living facilities and nursing homes aren’t exactly made of money, so the resistance to updating can be understandable. You have to budget for staff, equipment, meals, heating & cooling, basic needs, emergency response, transport…the list goes on and on. Make sure you don’t overlook new technologies that can help you save money, however. One of these is a nurse call system.

A nurse call system is a wireless, electronic way that residents can page nurses and other care personnel. In many facilities, this replaces outdated pull cord systems that require residents to be in specific locations, as well as physically able to reach the pull cord. This is counter-intuitive considering that these pull cord systems are most needed when a resident is least able to reach them.

It is important for your personnel to always be checking in on residents. Yet when residents are struggling in difficult physical (or mental health) situations where they might have to call for an emergency, this requires your personnel to nearly shadow residents full-time.

This isn’t a waste of time – it’s an aspect of caring for your residents. It is an inefficient use of time, however. It means your personnel will be able to give less attention to other residents. It means that your personnel won’t be able to do all the other work that ensures the health and safety of residents at your care facility. It may even annoy your employees, and it will almost certainly annoy your residents. That kind of frustration doesn’t help residents’ health, or your employees’ ability to handle a situation. It’s not a good solution long-term, especially when some residents may need this supervision for months or years. It’s not sustainable.

A wireless nurse call system enables residents to be able to call when they most need it, whether for themselves or for others. This doesn’t mean you can go completely hands-off, but it does mean both personnel and employees can feel safe in doing all their work and enjoying all their time. You can even link it into an indoor positioning system for nurses. Help isn’t a resident dragging themselves across a room to reach a pull cord. Help is being able to press a button hanging from a lanyard around your neck.