How Communication and Security Systems Help with Patient Wander Management

14 Nov How Communication and Security Systems Help with Patient Wander Management

When it comes to keeping your patients safe, patient wander management is essential. When we talk about patient wandering, we are referring to a patient’s unpredictable movements throughout the hospital or another type of healthcare setting. When patients wander around, not only are they potentially putting themselves in danger, but others as well. By putting measures in place to try and prevent patient wandering or making sure there are systems in place, it can be resolved quickly and efficiently if a patient does wander off is essential. Below, we explore some of the benefits of this technology, which could help with your wander management needs. 

Interdepartmental Communication

Having good interdepartmental communication is important to have in a healthcare setting on a day-to-day basis anyway, but when it comes to wander management it can be really useful. Interdepartmental communication allows you to make as many people aware as possible, which can help to find the person quicker, and it also allows for any important information about the patient’s health, behaviour, care plans and more to be passed on, so everyone can understand how best to deal with the situation and be prepared for various scenarios. A wander management system could incorporate communication systems such as paging systems, which can communicate information to the necessary individuals, who can then step in and resolve the situation.

Alarm Systems

When there is a case of patient wandering, an alarm must be raised at the earliest opportunity so that people are aware of the situation and can take the correct steps to help. Alarms notify staff that an issue is occurring, allowing for a quick response to begin; the quicker the response, hopefully, means that the patient has not had the chance to get too far or cause much harm to themselves or other patients.

Visuals and Tracking

Being able to get a visual of your wandering patient can be incredibly helpful for finding their location or determining where they have been. CCTV cameras could also be a useful addition to your wander management system; if you can spot a patient on camera, you could identify a location and help narrow down the search, getting the right people to the patient as quickly and efficiently as possible. Tracking technology in hospital wristbands could also help pinpoint the location of a wandering patient and get help to them as soon as possible. 

Controlling Building Access

Access control in a healthcare facility is ideal in any case, as it only allows the necessary personnel to enter certain areas, which in a hospital where there are sick patients, medications and sensitive documents, is highly beneficial. In terms of wander management, having door access means that your patient cannot get into specific areas, which not only narrows down areas to search but also can prevent them from running into somewhere that could be dangerous for them.

Protecting Other Patients

A wandering patient could not only present a danger to themselves but could also pose a risk to others in the hospital, by putting measures in place to offer protection to other patients could be advantageous, for example, baby tagging that allows infant monitoring and panic alarms, which patients can press to alert staff in an emergency. 

How Can LON Solutions Help?  

Here at LON Solutions, we can help you with a wander management system that looks to help control wandering situations as best and efficiently as possible. Our team has a high level of experience and knowledge, and we are with you from consultancy and design to the installation and any maintenance needs you require on the system. We listen well to ensure we understand the needs you have for your security and communication systems and will suggest the high-quality products we believe best meet these needs. Call us today on 01753 323 323 or email us via sales@lonsolutions.com for more information.