How To Automate the Tracking of Patient Belongings and Patient Valuables

Nurses have demanding jobs. Among other duties, they must address complex patient needs, make quick decisions that directly impact the health of those in their care, and deal with numerous interruptions and distractions that take time away from completing their core responsibilities.

In fact, according to Tom Bianculli of Zebra Technologies, “over one-third of a nurse’s time is spent doing things other than caring for patients and these “distractions” are addressable with this new computing paradigm—patient documentation, sharing knowledge from one shift to the next, etc. We can return time to that nurse and help him or her get back to their core mission of caring for patients.”

We want to help get nurses back to their core mission. IntelliTrack® Patient Belongings Tracking is a unique SaaS solution that allows nurses, security staff, and other end-users to efficiently track patient property. Here are some ways that the Patient Belongings Tracking application accomplishes that:

Collecting belongings starts with scanning a patient’s barcoded wristband and a property barcode to initiate the tracking record. A property barcode can be attached to a property bag or a large item. Using barcodes to accurately associate the property with a patient begins the chain of custody for the patient’s belongings. From this point on, every interaction an employee has with the belongings is recorded including the location of the property. This becomes important when trying to quickly locate property to return to a patient.

Patient Belongings Tracking is designed for efficient data entry. Through modern user interface design, the application is intuitive for both iOS and Android users. A property checklist is used to quickly record what items are collected from the patient. You can create and modify the checklist for belongings that are commonly collected from a patient and classify items as valuables or other property. Multiple photos can be captured of an item and can provide information that would be time-consuming to key in such as an item’s condition, make, model, and serial number. As desired, the user can also enter notes about a patients’ belongings.

Barcodes are used to provide rapid, accurate, and consistent recording of the property’s location. Patient Belongings Tracking uses barcodes to record the property storage location. These labels can be affixed to a bin, shelf, or other location, and allow recording of a more granular location than might be used currently (such as “storage room”). This can aid in locating retrieving property faster.

Nurses can view the location of all stored belongings for patient return. To retrieve property, the nurse scans the patient’s wristband then all property bags along with their locations are displayed. This significantly reduces time wasted in trying to locate belongings. The nurse can select a specific bag to return, or in the case of discharging a patient ensure that no belongings are left behind.

Our Patient Belongings Tracking application improves the efficiency of your front-line staff while reducing the need to deal with administrative details, allowing them to focus on what comes first, patient care.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT INTELLITRACK PATIENT BELONGINGS TRACKING HERE.

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