Patient safety is a critical aspect of healthcare, and hospitals are constantly seeking innovative solutions to mitigate risk and ensure the well-being of their patients. Rounding, the process of regularly checking on patients, plays a crucial role in identifying potential risks and addressing patient concerns promptly, helping to create a safer environment of care and enhance patient experience.
Healthcare organizations are increasingly turning to advanced technologies to improve rounding practices and streamline staff communication. Among these advancements, ObservSMART stands out as a healthcare safety software that is revolutionizing the way staff document essential patient rounding and 1:1 observations. This proven solution significantly increases patient safety while reducing risk and costs associated with adverse events.
Upgrading Rounding Tools to Mitigate Risk
Traditionally, healthcare staff were forced to rely on manual methods to perform patient safety rounds and 1-to-1 observations, including paper-based checklists. However, these methods lack regulation and are highly susceptible to human error, oversight, and miscommunication. Consequently, they create opportunities for adverse events and pose a significant threat to patient safety.
Recognizing the need to move away from paper-based rounding, various digital methods have emerged over time. Among them is the ObservSMART solution, which leverages innovative, proximity-based technology to ensure staff are completing patient safety checks within the appropriate timeframe and distance to the patient. By doing so, it actively identifies and mitigates potential risks like falls, suicide, elopement etc., providing crucial staff with an easy-to-use, digital tool for required, around-the-clock safety rounds and tasks.
The ObservSMART Difference
Real-time Data Collection: ObservSMART replaces insufficient rounding methods with a digital platform that allows crucial healthcare staff to record patient data and observations in real-time. This ensures that patient information is accurately captured and readily available for reference, enabling timely interventions and continuity of care.
Standardization and Customization: ObservSMART was designed by two women with 30+ years of health care experience, who wanted to create an innovative compliance platform that helps staff to meet regulatory guidelines and protocols. Therefore, ObservSMART is customizable to different workflows, enabling facilities to tailor rounding intervals, proximities etc. to their specific needs or programs, ensuring a personalized approach to patient care.
Automated Alerts and Notifications: ObservSMART incorporates visual reminders, audible notifications and alerts for staff and leadership to proactively identify potential issues or mitigate risk. This feature helps healthcare workers and leadership to stay vigilant and respond promptly to any emerging risks or concerns, thereby reducing the likelihood of adverse events.
Collaborative Communication: Effective communication among healthcare providers is essential for patient safety. ObservSMART facilitates seamless communication by capturing patient behaviors and locations, physician orders, staff observations etc., within one system with the option to fully integrate into any EHR, or standalone. This ensures a coordinated approach to patient care, minimizing the chances of miscommunication or information gaps.
Data Analytics and Performance Metrics: ObservSMART gathers comprehensive data throughout the rounding process, which can be analyzed to identify trends, patterns, and areas for improvement. These insights can drive evidence-based decision-making, optimize rounding practices, and enhance overall patient safety and outcomes.
Furthermore, ObservSMART is the only digital rounding solution that requires staff-to-patient proximity at the time of the observation, versus retrospectively. This creates a layer of accountability and supports staff with mission critical safety and clinical protocols. Staff do not have to access the patient’s wrist in order to do an observation, which helps maintain patient privacy while keeping staff safe from potential harm.
Benefits and Impacts
Implementing ObservSMART in healthcare facilities mitigates risk and yields numerous benefits for patient safety and care delivery:
Reduced Medical Errors: By capturing real-time data and using proactive escalation alerts, ObservSMART helps identify potential risks and prevent medical errors, improving patient safety.
Enhanced Communication: Seamless communication among healthcare providers fosters collaboration, enabling prompt interventions and a more comprehensive approach to patient care.
Standardization and Compliance: This patient safety technology ensures adherence to established protocols, regulatory guidelines, and best practices, promoting standardized care and compliance with regulatory requirements.
Improved Efficiency and Workflow: ObservSMART streamlines the rounding process, eliminating the need for manual documentation and reducing administrative burden, allowing healthcare providers to allocate more time to direct patient care.
Continuous Quality Improvement: The data analytics and performance metrics provided by ObservSMART enable hospitals to identify areas for improvement, implement targeted interventions, mitigate risk, and continuously enhance patient safety and care delivery.
How ObservSMART Helps
In general, psychiatric patients are encouraged to engage in various activities and therapies as part of their treatment, and spending time outside of their room is often an important aspect of that. Patients may participate in group therapy sessions, individual counseling, recreational activities, occupational therapy, or educational programs, which typically take place outside of their rooms. ObservSMART is a portable, proximity-based tool for staff to not only check patients within the rooms, but also throughout the facility.
ObservSMART leverages innovative technology to enhance patient safety. By providing real-time data collection, automated alerts, collaborative communication, and performance metrics, this innovative solution empowers healthcare providers to deliver timely and standardized care, minimize risks such as falls, suicide, or elopement, and improve patient and compliance outcomes. With over 300 partner organizations across all service lines utilizing ObservSMART to support staff with daily responsibilities, we are committed to helping as many organizations as possible make a positive impact on patient safety and overall quality of care.