Senior care facilities, assisted living communities, and nursing facilities were ground zero for the recent COVID-19 pandemic, causing widespread interest among healthcare administrators and facility owners in tightening procedures to minimize harm to residents.
While the emergence of COVID-19 shines a light on the importance of infection control among our most vulnerable, nursing facilities are constantly defending against outbreaks of diseases such as influenza and norovirus.
When facilities can use technologies such as telemedicine and video chatting to interact with residents, the level of care can be maintained while keeping social distancing protocols in place.
Video chatting capabilities also enable friends and family not able to visit in person to keep close contact with their loved ones in nursing facilities, even when there is no need for distancing.
Many nursing facilities that adopt information technologies are seeing improvements in care quality through the support of information exchange among care providers that allows them to better address patient needs.
Better IT capabilities were positively associated with lowered pain, urinary incontinence, and fewer pressure ulcers among residents.
But healthcare IT adoption goes far beyond creating better care outcomes — a managed IT program can also more fully protect patient data against theft or loss, minimizing risk for facilities.
The Advantages of Managed IT in a Residential Healthcare Environment
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues and the economy falters, today’s senior health facilities face mounting financial pressure amid pressure to deliver higher quality care.
A managed IT program is an investment that can bring multiple benefits to care facilities to enable them to work more efficiently and control costs while delivering significant benefits to residents and their families.
1. Keeping Patient Information Secure
The theft or loss of sensitive personal data has always been a concern for healthcare facilities. These organizations operate under strict compliance guidelines that govern data protection, such as the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
A managed IT program can leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to develop algorithms that keep an eye on unusual network behaviors, check for fraud, and prevent and detect malware incursions.
Using these automated security measures can increase compliance and lower the risk of data theft or loss. Additionally, security updates and patches are completed as soon as they are released to implement protection against emerging threats.
2. Flexibility, Scalability, and Cost Transparency
With managed services, care facilities can scale technologies up — or down — as their residential population changes. Rapid rollouts of new technologies or additional infrastructure are simple to accomplish, even across many locations.
Being able to expand communications abilities quickly allows facilities to keep care levels high, even during a period of rapid growth, while the simple billing process for managed IT allows for cost management.
Managed IT is billed on a per-month basis with one bill encompassing data, voice, and security services.
3. Better Staff Communication and Collaboration
Managed IT helps put technologies in place that help staff coordinate care plans and other activities more efficiently and effectively.
Electronic health records can be easily accessed and shared while being protected in compliance with regulatory guidance. Fast access allows residents’ care teams to easily collaborate and develop hard-hitting care plans to address both urgent needs and ongoing concerns more easily.
Blue Technologies’ Managed IT Team Can Help Your Facility Improve Care
Our Blue Technologies team of information technology have access to the latest — and most critical — protocols, technologies, and initiatives to help your senior care facilities thrive in this post-COVID environment.
We understand both the need for cost control and the need for heightened care among healthcare facilities, and we know that with managed services these two important considerations need not be mutually exclusive.
We offer a full range of services that can help your facility increase staff productivity and efficiency, control and protect patient data and other sensitive information, and keep costs low while providing a high level of care and comfort to your residents.
We will expertly assess your current infrastructure and environment, design a system that addresses your most pressing needs and is easily expandable to meet future concerns and provide complete and ongoing support and maintenance.
With our team in place, your staff can focus on providing the services your residents need and want with the freedom and peace of mind that comes with knowing your IT system is reliable, flexible, and protected.
Discover the incredible difference managed IT can make in your care facility. Contact a Blue Technologies consultant today and the help you need to create a better environment for your staff and residents.