Using two-way radios in a nursing home setting

Radios have many uses in a whole host of different healthcare settings so we have created an article to demonstrate the safety and functional features of our communications equipment. We work with businesses of all different sizes so whether your care home is a small outfit or an extensive one we can work together with you to provide a solution.

Emergency Features for staff and resident safety

Care homes can be a real ‘home away from home’ for residents and a rewarding place to work. However, with the physical and mental complexities of your residents needs there will inevitably by times when healthcare or safety emergencies arise. Below are three scenarios to demonstrate the use of radios in emergency situations:

1. A Healthcare Emergency

A nurse is with a resident when the patient becomes unwell. The carer doesn’t want to leave them as they need to perform first responder care but they need to alert other staff for back up and may also need to call an ambulance. They use the emergency button on the radio to instantly alert others. Open Mic is another safety feature where the nurse can communicate with others regarding location and status without even pushing a button. This option can also be useful in a hospice or palliative care setting so the best possible end of life care can be provided.

2. Managing Patient Aggression

Patients with dementia or Alzheimer’s can become confused without warning and situations can escalate from a happy interchange between a nurse and resident to a dangerous situation very quickly. The carer can discreetly press a button without further intensifying the situation to tell other staff members that they need support. This allows the team to consistently provide that patient and their family with the best possible care and maintain the safety of the patient and the staff members. In an emergency the Man Down feature on two way radios can inform the team that the nurse is in real difficulty and can react quickly.

3. For an Evacuation

A fire alarm may alert everyone to an emergency but can it tell you the location of the fire or the severity? If a nurse has additional information, for example where the fire is or knows an exit is blocked, they can send an All Call message to all staff to alert them and carry out the evacuation more smoothly and quickly.

Communicating to different Groups (Nursing, Cleaners, Security) Depending on the size and type of care home there will be different groups of people who need to communicate. In smaller homes this may include direct care employees, managers, kitchen staff and cleaners and in larger settings other users may include security and porters.

Many two-way radios use channels allowing different groups of people to talk as one group without alerting others to irrelevant or confidential information. For example, a security guard may need to inform to a receptionist about a relative trying to enter the building or a resident trying to leave but doesn’t need to alert the whole staff team. There may be a confidential piece of information required for care, such as a sensitive healthcare issue, that is only relevant to a specific nursing team and for safeguarding and dignity should be kept to the primary caregiver’s knowledge only.

Using two-way radios can significantly increase productivity and efficiency using instant communication as well as improving standards of care.

We can provide solutions from two radios through to a hundred radios and more Two radios – Zycomm recently provided a carer and their partner with two radios allowing the carer to hear their partner instantly from any part of their house; increasing the quality of life for both the carer and their partner.

A few radios – We can provide unlicenced PMR radios for effective indoor and outdoor communication where our customers want something simple to use, lightweight and cost effective Multiple radios for different staff teams – If your home includes a range of different staff teams such as security, cleaners and direct care providers we can deliver licenced radios which talk on different channels allowing teams to share confidential and relevant information.

A full integrated radio system – We have provided radios and repeaters for full job management systems in large hospitals settings such as Leicestershire Hospital. If you have a very large care setting or want to look at multiple site communications, we can help you with this.

Providing the solution for you not us!

We will guide you through the process to choose your perfect radio. We will talk you through the process making it a quick and enjoyable experience. We offer free site visits and free radio trials so you always know we’ll provide a solution that works for you.

Here are some questions to ask yourself (or us!)

Is the information you share over radios confidential? If you don’t need to share sensitive details via radio then licence free radios may well be the perfect option on price and requirement. If you need to keep information private from other groups or other radio users a licence option may be the solution you need. Chat to our friendly team for further advice, no two radio users are the same.

Are you a fan of full display screens? If you want your staff to be able to share information without talking verbally and prefer the ‘feel’ of a mobile phone without the security and distracting qualities of a mobile phone then a radio display model may be best for you, we also offer non-display options. We know care homes can range drastically from facilities offering 95% independent living through to palliative and dementia specialism. Speak to our team of experts today to find the right solution for you on 01773 570123 or email sales@zycomm.co.uk