Hospitals are recognizing how real-time location systems (RTLS) can be key components of their workplace violence prevention plans. Many RTLS vendors offer discreet, wearable staff duress badges outfitted with panic buttons. Once pressed, those duress buttons alert the hospital an incident is underway inside the building and provide the location of the incident.
But locating staff under duress indoors is only one part of the equation, and most RTLS solutions don’t work outside of a building’s walls.
“There is a need and a desire from the providers to have coverage not only inside of the building, but in the parking lot as well,” said Don Seamons, a research director for KLAS, in an interview with Healthsystems CIO Editor-in-Chief Anthony Guerra. “My wife works in a hospital, and I worry [about her] more between leaving the building and getting in the car. That’s where I’d like her tracked,” Guerra responded.
The majority of RTLS platforms cannot locate outside
He’s not alone in that concern — it’s a challenging problem to solve. Legacy RTLS platforms that run on heavy infrastructure potentially require similar footprints outdoors which isn’t practical or fiscally viable. Alternatively, some traditional platforms utilize technology that simply isn’t intended to operate in outdoor spaces.
Cellular-powered solutions work in theory, but in practice, they fall short for the same reason the technology isn’t used indoors — it’s limited to the latitude and longitude location and missing altitude. At many hospitals, staff and patients park in multi-tiered garages. If a nurse is being assaulted, cellular technology can tell you they’re in the garage but can’t identify the exact floor, which negates the value.
While every hospital campus is unique, outdoor spaces can account for a significant portion of the overall campus footprint. How can staff feel safe knowing that, if they’re a victim of workplace violence, they’re only findable in part of the hospital’s footprint? That uncovered portion is not only material in size, but it’s also the space employees are most concerned with.
Only one RTLS platform can address staff duress inside AND out
The Cognosos Guardian platform harnesses artificial intelligence as its location engine enabling an ultralight infrastructure that removes the barriers traditional RTLS platforms experience. The platform combines long-range wireless networking with LocationAI, the only AI-native location intelligence platform to provide outdoor coverage and room-level accuracy indoors. The system operates on an inexpensive, lightweight infrastructure including badges equipped with duress buttons, infrequently placed beacons, an internet-enabled gateway, and the LocationAI engine. The system’s beacons can be installed on outdoor structures like light posts and garage ceilings.
Hospital staff want to know they’re protected anywhere on campus, indoors and out — even when they are on the move. With an AI-powered RTLS like Cognosos Guardian, doctors, nurses, and other medical staff can feel confident that they’re just one button push away from help, all the time.
Want to stop compromising staff safety in your hospital’s outdoor spaces? We’re here to help. Contact us today to schedule a demo of Cognosos Guardian.
