SAN JOSE, Calif., Sept. 22, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vocera Communications, Inc. (NYSE: VCRA ), the leading healthcare communications company, today announced that long-time customer MedStar Montgomery Medical Center has once again improved patient care with the launch of a fall prevention program. The innovative new initiative combines prescriptive analytics using the hospital’s clinical data with the Vocera Communication System, an intelligent software platform enabling real-time alerts and notifications, secure texting, hands-free communication, and integration with more than 75 clinical systems including electronic health records, nurse call and bed management solutions. The program is supported by analyticsMD’s prescriptive analytics solution.
For more than 13 years, MedStar Montgomery Medical Center has been a Vocera customer, initially implementing the Vocera Communication System enterprise-wide to reduce noise levels. That objective was quickly met; and over the years, the hospital has leveraged Vocera technology in many other ways to improve patient experience and workflow efficiency. Equipping environmental services staff with wearable, voice-controlled communication devices helped improve room turnover rates, and integration between the bed tracking system and the Vocera solution significantly improved patient wait times and throughput in the emergency department. In 2012, the hospital integrated its nurse call solution with the Vocera system, connecting patients quickly to their caregivers and reducing staff response times.
With a continuous focus on patient safety and satisfaction, MedStar implemented analyticsMD’s prescriptive analytics solution in 2016, gaining real-time, actionable insight into its patient population. The analyticsMD platform looks at both historical and transactional data to proactively notify MedStar team members about fall risks. Now MedStar has a real-time fall alert system that notifies care teams about high-risk patients. These alerts are sent directly to assigned nurses via their Vocera Communication Badge. Because the badges are wearable, staff members’ hands are free to quickly help patients at the bedside while also calling for co-workers’ assistance if needed.
“We are noticing a downward trend in falls since implementing the prevention program using the Vocera technology in conjunction with analyticsMD prescriptive analytics,” said Christiane Brown, assistant vice president of information technology at MedStar. “It’s amazing how the right information combined with the right communication technology can have such as positive impact on patient care and safety.”
In addition to safeguarding patients, an effective fall prevention program can improve operational efficiency. On average, a serious fall-related injury adds 6.3 days to a patient’s hospital stay and costs approximately $14,056, according The Joint Commission.
“Real-time communication between care teams impacts multiple aspects of a health system’s operations and is essential in improving patient safety,” said Brent Lang, president and CEO of Vocera. “I’m impressed by the way MedStar Montgomery Medical Center has integrated its clinical data with the Vocera Communication Platform to improve staff responsiveness and reduce falls. This innovative approach is a great example of how human-centered technology can elevate the patient experience.”
About MedStar Montgomery Medical Center MedStar Montgomery Medical Center is a 138-bed not-for-profit hospital serving the greater Baltimore and Washington metropolitan areas. A proud member of MedStar Health, MedStar Montgomery is committed to delivering the latest in modern medicine and medical technology.
About analyticsMD The analyticsMD platform empowers frontline hospital managers to make data-driven operational decisions in real time. Machine learning and artificial intelligence uses a hospital’s data along with proprietary external signals empower staff and improve patient satisfaction in the value-based healthcare system.To learn more about analyticsMD visit www.analyticsmd.com .
About Vocera Vocera Communications, Inc. offers one of the most robust clinical communications systems in healthcare. Installed in more than 1,300 organizations worldwide, Vocera delivers secure, integrated and intelligent communication solutions that enable care teams to collaborate more efficiently by delivering the right information, to the right person, on the right device, in the right location, at the right time. Vocera solutions provide hands-free voice communication, secure text messaging, patient engagement tools, and integrated clinical workflow with EHRs, nurse call systems and physiological monitors. These solutions help improve operational efficiency, quality of care, safety and satisfaction across the continuum of care. In addition to technology solutions, Vocera drives thought leadership and new standards in care to elevate patient, family, nurse and physician experiences via the company’s research collaborative, the Experience Innovation Network. Vocera is led by President and CEO Brent Lang and is headquartered in San Jose, California, with offices in San Francisco, Tennessee, Canada, India, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Robert J. Zollars is the Chairman of the Board. For more information, visit www.vocera.com and @VoceraComm on Twitter.
The Vocera logo is a trademark of Vocera Communications, Inc. Vocera® is a trademark of Vocera Communications, Inc. registered in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other trademarks appearing in this release are the property of their respective owners.
MEDIA CONTACT Amendola Communications for Vocera Communications: Joy DiNaro, Media Relations Director 847.809.0406 jdinaro@acmarketingpr.com
