What do you stand to gain by implementing a first-rate healthcare intranet? Your healthcare facility or organization can improve the level of care provided to patients, improve staff communication, boost education opportunities, and create a resource center that enhances the corporate culture.
Key Healthcare Intranet Benefits
An intranet is software that allows companies to build a private and secure communication network for sole use by employees. It can be a portal for messaging, document or file sharing, training activities, benefits administration, and more. There are many ways a customized intranet network can help the healthcare industry. For starters, these are three of the more notable benefits of an intranet in a healthcare setting.
Better Staff Communication
With an intranet solution, you can have a staff directory that provides contact information for all employees! Search the directory for nurses, doctors, office staff, and filter by department, location, or title. You can display all this contact info, or only what is relevant to your users. The directory also can include all business locations. Customize information such as hours of operation, phone and fax numbers, and emails. An intranet solution extends communication well beyond a phone call or an email. Communicate with a vast audience in an open forum, or message someone and collaborate using Microsoft Teams.
Centralized Resources
An intranet for health organizations can enhance the patient care process and experience. Digital storage options make it easier for everyone to access patient files and update information, avoiding paperwork snags and inaccuracies. An intranet solution can also provide access to training manuals for both new and current employees. Peer sharing through open communication is also a way to access company information or resources, but specialized dashboards for each clinician or department can improve decision-making and data assessment.
Enhanced Patient Care
Your healthcare organization depends on patient satisfaction for success. Finding new ways to improve the patient experience will keep your patients happy and coming back for all their health needs. Through a healthcare intranet, you have an option for streamlining certain aspects of data tracking and monitoring patient feedback. Staff can interact with one another to develop solutions to patient concerns, offer advice, or share new insights. Collaboration becomes easier, providing continuity with patient care. Fewer errors in information or miscommunication improve foundational processes and care practices.
Key Practice for Optimal Intranet Usage
Simply implementing an intranet won't be enough to help your healthcare organization reap all of the benefits mentioned. You need to rely on proven best practices to make your organization competitive and create unique advantages over other facilities. Some of the best practices we've seen our healthcare clients choose to incorporate their intranet:
Use the Right People
You will need more than your IT people to get involved with your healthcare intranet setup. You will want to include perspectives and ideas from everyone who handles patient care and safety, as well as those on the front lines of administration. When you get all essential staff involved in the design and selection of features, you are more likely to see a consistent engagement with the system. No two intranets operate the same, so be sure to gather insights from all classes of employees. Use your intranet to include nurses in programs that deal with infection prevention, dosages, or patient safety. Physicians should have access to continuing education resources, while your HR department should have access to employee benefits administration or other forms.
Keep It Monitored
An intranet is no use if the information is outdated or hard to access. Have different team members be responsible for content areas on the site, and choose people who are experts in their field. Dividing up content areas spreads the burden of updating and diversifies the information to keep it fresh and engaging. Do establish a level of governance of your intranet. Have usage procedures and policies in place to define employee expectations when using the site.
Focus on Value
Nurses and physicians are always on the go, and they may not always be on the computer when trying to access important information. Rather than tying them down to a desk to get into the system, create mobile access from tablets or smartphones. Be sure to have these devices cleared for security through the IT department first, but allow key employees remote access to the system.
You also create value with your content. Relevant information for company events or announcements is a good starting place, but think about communication needs, employee expectations, onboarding, special recognition, to name a few. There is no limit to the information you can share through your intranet system, but the trick is to make sure that it is material your employees have a vested interest in. Make the pages easy to navigate and use to keep engagement up.
Your healthcare organization might be doing okay, but wouldn't you love to see it thrive and blossom? When you work with hubley to design an intranet solution, you give your health organization a key advantage over its competitors. You also grant your employees a way to improve their care services and patient health.
