The following articles support the mission statement goals of improving quality of care and increasing productivity:
Article #1
Sue Miller called this afternoon after speaking with her unit managers and they discussed the sheer importance of the nurse call system to her facility. She calls it "the residents' lifeline to the nurses" because without it "we would not survive."
According to Sue, the nursing staff sometimes takes the nurse call system and its functions for granted because it prevents so many problems by allowing her staff to be everywhere at once. The nurse call system ensures that help is available at all times of the day, which prevents many tragedies from occurring.
Sue stressed that she would have some horrible stories to tell if no nurse call system existed. This, in itself, is "more than enough reason to justify our need for a nurse call system."
-Sue Miller (Linwood Health Center)
Article #2
Mike Donovan (Curbell) reports the following:
I spoke with Emma Bhende from Bay Manor Health Care Center on August 11 and asked her for a nurse call success story. Despite the fact that she couldn't offer me a specific success story in which a life was saved, she did offer a story about a patient named "John."
John was a heavier resident who had difficulty in moving around. While he was very aware of his surroundings and was able to communicate to the staff, he had a hard time getting to the bathroom. The nurse call system was invaluable to him. In addition to summoning the help he needed, the system ensured that he would not have an embarrassing "accident."
Emma mentioned that a lot of patients with special needs rely on the nurse call system for essential communication. The nurse call system allows these patients to call for help when needed, and gives them a greater degree of both freedom and dignity.
- Emma Bhende (Bay Manor Health Care)
Article #3
The following story comes from Holly Bell, a certified Nurses Aid at Father Baker Manor:
During an evening shift, Holly was alerted by the visual indicator on at the Nurses station and the dome light, that a resident was in need of assistance. This particular resident, "Margaret," was very familiar to Holly. Margaret was 83 years old and very vibrant, but was very dependent on her call cord as a link to her caregivers. To complicate matters, Margaret was completely blind.
When Holly arrived at the room, Margaret was frantically pressing her nurse call cord. Holly immediately identified the reason for her panic: a confused, elderly resident with Alzheimers was in her room, and his unfamiliar presence scared Margaret.
Fortunately, Holly arrived in time to prevent either resident from getting hurt, and was able to escort the elderly gentleman back to his room
- Holly Bell (Father Baker Manor)
Article #4
According to Mary Flynn, former nurse, an extremely overweight patient at Our Lady of Victory hospital had dropped her book on the floor. While reaching over the side of the bed in an attempt to retrieve it, her weight shifted and she became stuck.
Fortunately, she was still able to maneuver enough to use her call cord. Help was summoned quickly, and the nursing staff was able to get her back into bed without injury.
- Mary Flynn (Our Lady of Victory Hospital)
Article #5
A young man came into the hospital with a serious back injury. Diving into a shallow swimming pool, he hit his head on the bottom. As a result, the patient became paralyzed in most parts of his body. The patient also experienced spasms in his arms, a common side effect of this type of injury.
Nursing requested a device that the patient could easily use. A pillow speaker was too difficult for him to use, and with the spasms, there could be false calls. The nursing staff decided that a breath-activated call cord was the best solution. Not only did both the patient and staff feel comfortable with the device, it allowed the patient to use the most stable part of his body to reliably use the product.
- Beverly Walsh (Millard Fillmore Hospital)
If you would like to submit an article, please contact Harry Massey.