Video Security for Hospitals & Healthcare Facilities
As the Joint Commission reports in its 2019 National Patient Safety Goals Guide, identifying and mitigating patient safety risks are key to meeting patient safety goals. By having HIPAA compliant surveillance technology deployed across hospitals and other healthcare facilities, staff can mitigate risks that may compromise the safety of patients, staff, and guests.
Jump to each section to learn more:
• How Important is Surveillance Technology in Healthcare Settings?
• Must-Have Features for Hospital & Healthcare Facility Security Cameras
• Impact of Video Security for Hospitals & Healthcare Facilities
• How does Healthcare Leadership & Management use Video Surveillance?
• How do Hospital & Facility Employees and Staff use Surveillance Technology?
• How do Patients & Visitors Benefit from Surveillance Technology?
• Final Takeaways about Surveillance Technology for Healthcare
How is Surveillance Technology used in Healthcare Settings?
- Monitor Patient, Visitor, and Employee Activity: Having a modern surveillance system in any hospital or healthcare facility allows staff to more effectively monitor patient, visitor, and employee activities. While there are many benefits to streamlined visibility across a healthcare settings, it’s important to monitor only areas that are in compliance with industry guidelines.
- Identify Medical Malpractice Surveillance footage is critical in assessing employee and staff usage of medical equipment and medicine. Ultimately, if access to resources is abused or used inaccurately, video evidence is critical in the event of liability claims. With visual evidence, quickly gather the intel required to make informed conclusions that guide appropriate next steps.
- Gather Insights to Improve Patient Care: While investing in surveillance technology may seem like an expensive way to measure patient care, the long-term implications that may result from negligence are far more costly. By implementing surveillance in healthcare settings, surface potential blindspots and areas of improvement; proactively building safety protocols that improve patient care will ultimately result in fewer patient injuries and liability claims.
- Resolve Incidents Quickly & Effectively: Security camera footage provides an objective look at incidents that can be misinterpreted or misremembered by patients, and is a critical fixture in operating hospitals and healthcare facilities. The ability to playback footage of an incident gives staff the ability to take appropriate actions quickly. Incidents that commonly, and could benefit from surveillance footage, occur include:
- Employee, visitor, or patient injuries
- Patients in restricted areas of hospital facilities
- Staff malpractice and negligence
Must-Have Features for Hospital & Healthcare Facility Security Cameras
- HIPAA Compliance: Hospitals and healthcare facilities looking to add video surveillance as a resource to improve patient safety and reduce industry threats must select a solution that is in compliance with HIPAA requirements. A HIPAA compliant surveillance solutions should include:
- Store Protected Health Information securely and fully encrypt patient data
- Offer options for expandable video storage
- Implement safeguards with defaults for highest security settings
- Include audit logs to track all system activities, including failed log-in attempts
- And more (read more about HIPAA compliance)
- Motion Detection & Motion Notifications: With a surveillance solution that detects motion in unauthorized places or at unusual times, healthcare providers can take a proactive approach to preventing and mitigating potentially life-threatening incidents. For instance, if a patient were to leave a dementia nursing home in the middle of the night, a surveillance system with motion detection could automatically notify the security or facilities team of the detected activity. The dementia caregivers could then begin urgent recovery efforts far earlier than they otherwise would.
- Easy To Use: With the assumption that most healthcare professionals are non-technical users, it’s important to choose a surveillance platform that is intuitive and easy for staff to review and retrieve security camera footage independently. Modern software interfaces that simplify surveillance management empower staff and other authorized users to conduct their own footage investigations, which minimizes day-to-day reliance on security professionals. In addition to saving both time and IT resources, an easy to use surveillance solution can make quality management in healthcare possible.
Impact of Video Security for Hospitals & Healthcare Facilities
Healthcare Leadership and Management
- Can offer enhanced patient safety and improved security protocols
- Can monitor staff adherence to conduct rules and regulations
- Can streamline the process of addressing and settling patient liability cases
Hospital & Facility Employees and Staff
- Can streamline incident investigation using security camera footage
- Can protect team from unfound accusations of improper medicine, equipment, or patient conduct
- Can provide insurance-friendly security camera footage for workplace injury claims
Patients and Visitors
- Can provide 24/7 protection of patients, especially those with dementia or Alzheimer’s
- Can provide source of truth when addressing patient concerns and complaints
- Can increase patient satisfaction with experience at a given healthcare facility
Final Takeaway: Surveillance Technology for Healthcare
In a world of bad press around medical malpractice, HIPAA rights violations, and even patient abuse, ensuring improvements in patient safety in healthcare facilities has become a global health priority. For many, improving healthcare quality at inpatient care and outpatient care centers begins with the enhanced visibility that surveillance solutions provide.