RIVERSPRING LIVING
These GoPros are also coming in handy for the rehabilitation and discharge process , especially when patients go to RiverSpring for care following major surgery , before heading back home .
Cameras are again loaned to family members who are encouraged to film the patient ’ s living quarters , allowing RiverSpring to carry out a virtual walkthrough , point out potential hazards or obstacles and make any necessary adjustments .
Finally , residents and family members are using VR headsets to meet in a virtual environment , where their avatars can talk and interact as if they were together .
“ We ’ re doing that now with a number of our more alert residents ,” Finkelstein continues , “ and it ’ s been a very good learning experience .”
Partnerships accelerate digital transformation Two projects in particular went “ full throttle ”, as Finkelstein puts it , at the very beginning of RiverSpring Living ’ s digital transformation .
The CIO pauses here to pay tribute to the Hauser Foundation , which left a generous gift to thank staff members for the care extended to Gustave Hauser , a patient at RiverSpring during the COVID-19 pandemic .
“ Rita Hauser has been very thankful for the service we provided to her husband and gave us a sizeable donation to be used only for technology projects ,” Finkelstein explains . “ So , that was the springboard that allowed us to think bigger than our budgets .”
The first project of note highlighted by Finkelstein is an investment in automated vital signs carts , in this case provided by Medline and seldom seen in long-term care facilities . It means all vital signs can be recorded simultaneously and automatically entered into electronic medical records , saving nurses an estimated four to six hours per week due to no longer having to do this manually , and allowing them to instead focus on patients .
Meanwhile , Finkelstein reveals one of the biggest concerns held by residents , families and care organisations across the sector is having slow response times .
RiverSpring had already worked with Unimed over the preceding couple of decades to install traditional nurse call systems but , deciding the time was right to upgrade , the firm issued an RFP and ultimately selected Ascom as its solution of choice .
Now , when a resident presses their nurse call button , an alert is immediately sent to mobile phones carried by staff members , allowing them to triage the numerous calls they receive and take whatever action is required .
As it stands , the goal is to answer calls within three minutes , and , during the system ’ s first year in place , the average response time for more than 100,000 calls stood at one minute and 55 seconds . “ Partnerships are critical , and both Unimed and Ascom have been amazing partners ,” concludes Finkelstein .
“ We really don ’ t want to have a transactional relationship with our vendors . We want to know that , if we have a problem , they ’ re going to be there to support us . And if they need a reference or some recommendations from their manufacturers to help redesign a system , they know they can come to us for guidance .
“ Our partners are the ones helping us become successful , so we really look at partnerships as a two-way street .”
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