Boosting Care for Patients with Mobile Technology

A nurse’s number one priority is the patient. This is especially true at Catawba Regional Hospice in Newton, N.C., where nurses travel to multiple homes each day to care for and comfort patients with serious, advanced illnesses.

The time nurses spend traveling to see patients and filing reports can cut into precious patient time. So, over the past several years, Catawba Regional Hospice has turned to mobile technology and Verizon Wireless to find wireless solutions that help them increase the time nurses spend at bedsides and decrease the time filing reports.

Today, hospice employees use GPS on mobile phones for directions, aircards for Wi-Fi connectivity and CellTrak technology for reporting – all of which drive operational and administrative efficiencies without cutting into one-on-one patient time.

Using CellTrak technology, for instance, allows nurses to quickly transmit patient records and status reports, to help simplify recordkeeping. Nurses use GPS to help them cut travel time and reach patient homes safely and quickly with clear-cut instructions spoken over smartphones.

“With these increased efficiencies, our nursing staff now have time to visit 90 additional patients each week, and that means a lot to the patients we serve and their families,” said Tammy Jensen, finance director, Catawba Regional Hospice.

The benefits of utilizing mobile technology are twofold. The hospice is saving $70,000 each year and creating a better work experience for staff.

For its innovative use of mobile technology, Catawba Regional Hospice was recently awarded a $10,000 grand prize for winning the 2013 Wireless Innovation Awards in the Carolinas. The annual program recognizes small- to mid-sized organizations that use Verizon solutions to mobilize and innovate their business processes.