(Image Credit Author: Agriculture And Stock Department, Publicity Branch [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons)
Evolution
From the 1940’s until the late noughties (2010 onward) Nurse Call systems had changed little. The hand shaken metal bell being replaced by an electronic equivalent with little or no intelligence within the system and few, if any, advantages to patients or staff.
Fast forward to 2014 and technology was rapidly catching up and being used to deliver systems that added significant value to the operation of anything from a small Aged Care facility to a large Hospital.
In 2018 the capabilities of most Nurse Call systems regularly exceed the skills of the Facility staff to extract the most value from the technology. This is a sad indictment on both the system suppliers and the Facility managers but there are changes for the better occurring on a daily basis.
Standards
In an Industry that, for the most part, now embraces technology, Australian regulators have been slow to provide the usual framework of Standards that would guide and hold accountable Nurse Call system providers.
AS 3811 (1999) essentially provides the barest of rules for cabled systems and makes no mention of the wireless systems that have been available from some suppliers since 1982.
This regulatory wasteland is changing slowly and Federal legislators are working with Industry leaders to develop green papers that will lead to system guidelines for “Over 55’s” Independent Living Units along with more prescriptive rules for Assisted Living Facilities.
Compliance
Based on the information above it is easy to see why many Directors, Facility Managers, IT Managers and Maintenance staff are at a loss when it comes to providing their leaders with a clear statement of Nurse Call functionality and readiness as the day for the Accreditation audit arrival approaches.
It is deemed sufficient by most Accreditation auditors to have a functional, well maintained and tested Nurse Call system. This functionality may or may not be tested during the onsite component of the Accreditation but well documented and consistent testing records should be available.
Checks
Due to the aforementioned lack of regulation, it is critical for all facilities that use a Nurse Call system to accurately record the date, time and result of Call Point checks that are done on a regular basis. These checks can be done on anything from a monthly to annual basis but the more regular the better e.g. Quarterly or Bi-annually are optimal.
The better Nurse Call systems available today provide detailed records of button pushes, battery checks and reduce the workload of Maintenance and Administration in the preparation for an Accreditation audit.
Records
As mentioned previously, good record keeping and regular system checks are the keys to good report card on Nurse Call systems. Whether it is an old notebook for smaller facilities, an MS Excel spreadsheet or the Database of a well-designed Nurse Call system, time-stamped records in a consistent format will provide auditors with the information that they need to ‘tick the box’ for Nurse Call compliance.
Maintenance
Electronic Nurse Call systems have been around in one form or another since the late 60’s. Most systems in use today, particularly in Aged Care, are between eight and thirty years old. These older systems have generally been declared end-of-life by their suppliers but continue to function well, albeit with a limited feature set.
Here more than ever regular system maintenance is the key. Whether cabled or wireless, no system can survive without some maintenance. Six monthly or Annual checks that provide a facility with a certificate of capability should be a fundamental component of the Facility maintenance schedule.
Continuous Improvement
In addition to all of the above information it is an important part of the Accreditation process to demonstrate to auditors what a Facility is doing to improve their Nurse Call system and its responsiveness to the needs of residents, carers and management. Most genuine suppliers are constantly developing new and innovative technology that adds value to all those whom it ‘touches’ on a day-to-day basis. Call your provider and ask what they can do to improve an older system or, more importantly, build into your budget an amount that will provide money for regular system maintenance, important upgrades and useful enhancements.
(This document was written prior to the Royal Commission into Aged Care – 2018)
Geoff Quinn | General Manager – Nurse Call
geoff.quinn@vitalcare.com.au
+61 416 277 709
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