Add to favorites

#Industry News

What is Continuum of Care and How do You Get Started?

A patient's health often involves more than one or two visits. Learn how a proper continuum of care program can make the entire care journey an efficient and effective one.

As hospitals have continued to advance their care with technology such as medical computers, EHR records, and more, the goal has always been to create a fully optimized healthcare system, one that seamlessly transitions a patient from step to step in their journey from sick to healthy without a single hiccup. The goal has been, and will continue to be, the creation of a continuum of care.

What is Continuum of Care?

Continuum of care refers to maintaining continuous care for a patient as they move across multiple, different caregivers, procedures, facilities, and treatments.

Continuum of care is achieved through obtaining a big-picture look at a patient and the journey that brought them to your facility. By understanding what treatments and tests the patient has already undergone through other facilities and providers, the next facility responsible for caring for them can pick up where the last left off, continuing their treatment without stopping to give out redundant tests and prescriptions.

Components of Continuum of Care

Concise Internal Communication

Patients, especially those with more intense conditions, need to be monitored and cared for by multiple nurses, physicians, and specialists as they transition from stage to stage. Concisely imparting the necessary information about a patient between internal staff is paramount to maintaining continuous care. The more comprehensive caregivers are with their notes on a given patient, the less the next doctor or nurse has to spend mining for answers.

Organized Scheduling

Patients that require round-the-clock monitoring can’t be left alone while your staff struggles to find out who forgot they were on call or why so-and-so is leaving early. Having an organized schedule set in place with staff that’s adequately informed about who’s on call in case of an emergency is a given for being able to deliver continuous care.

Communication with External Providers

Patients with very specific ailments are likely going to need care from very specialized caregivers, many of which likely aren’t part of your network. In order to maintain continuous care for these patients as they transition into your facility, you’ll naturally need open lines of communication between your staff and those external providers.

What’s Needed to Start With Continuum of Care?

Long Lasting Medical Computers

A nurse or physician is often closely tied to their computer on wheels setup while they look after their patients. That makes perfect sense when you consider these computers house the EHR records staff members use to reference and store important notes. Medical computers designed to last an entire shift or more are an ideal solution for facilities hoping to eliminate any inefficiencies in how they look after their patients.

A battery powered computer, especially one with hot-swappable batteries that can be changed without powering down the device, provides multiple shifts’ worth of power.

Telehealth Solutions

If a patient requires continuous attention, their care can’t come to a screeching halt once they’re outside of your facility.

There are a few pieces of telehealth hardware one can invest in. Wearables, for example, can allow providers to monitor patient vitals even outside of the facility. Video chatting software that is HIPAA compliant can even let physicians remain in contact with patients remotely.

When dealing with contagious patients within the facility, a remote-controlled cart paired with an antimicrobial medical tablet or computer can allow doctors to perform tests/diagnostics without being present in the room.

Clinical Collaboration Tech

HIPAA compliant messaging apps allow physicians to share patient data with doctors outside of their facility without fear of that data being intercepted by a cybercriminal. Video chatting apps also open up the possibility of speaking with the specialists your patient had visited prior to coming under your care.

If your patient requires digital pathology services, having the right hardware like high-end scanners and displays can also ensure the scans you send out to providers outside of your network are of enough quality that important details aren’t muddled or overlooked.

Continuum of Care is Something to Constantly Optimize For

It’s not possible to completely eliminate any and all unexpected blockages to delivering care. The most healthcare facilities can do is eliminate stopgaps they have control over such as miscommunication. For more information on how your facility can combat these pain points, contact Cybernet today.

Details

  • 5 Holland, Irvine, CA 92618, USA
  • Cybernet Manufacturing