The Key Benefits of Mass Notification Systems in Healthcare

The critical benefits of Mass Notifications Systems (MNS) in healthcare include enhanced emergency response, improved routine communication, regulatory compliance, and cost and time efficiency. Adopting a robust MNS can significantly improve overall operations and safety in healthcare facilities.

Enhanced Emergency Response for Healthcare

Delays in communication during emergencies can lead to severe consequences, including loss of life and property damage. Healthcare facilities need rapid, reliable communication systems to respond effectively to crises.

Emergency Notifications Systems significantly improve response times to medical crises, fires, active shooters, and severe weather emergencies. For example, In June 2024, a misconfigured update to CrowdStrike Falcon software led to widespread IT outages, impacting numerous industries, including healthcare. Hospitals experienced disruptions in patient services, lab collections, secure file transfers, and more. (BankInfoSecurity)​.

Critical Instances of Effective MNS Implementation

Real-life examples illustrate the necessity of effective Mass Notifications Systems implementation in healthcare settings. These instances demonstrate how MNS can mitigate the impact of various emergencies, ensuring that healthcare facilities maintain operational continuity and patient safety during critical situations.

1. Medical Crises: Instantly notify surgical teams to prepare operating rooms for emergency surgeries. 

Delays in emergency surgical procedures can significantly increase mortality rates. For instance, the mortality rate for patients with delayed surgeries is 4.9%, compared to 3.2% for those without delays​ (CMAJ)​.

Download the Regroup Mass Notification Effective Crisis Communication Guide.

2. Severe Weather: Severe weather in 2023 caused over $3.1 billion in insured damage across Canada, significantly impacting healthcare facilities.

 A severe storm in North Carolina caused widespread damage, including sinkholes and downed trees, highlighting the need for prompt alerts to ensure the safety of staff and patients (Spectrum News, IBC)​ (Working Together to Ensure Peace of Mind)​​​.

3. Active Shooter Situations: Provide real-time updates to staff and patients, directing them to secure areas.

Shooting at Northside Hospital Midtown, Atlanta

A patient-turned-gunman opened fire at Northside Hospital Midtown in Atlanta on May 2, 2023, after becoming disgruntled during an appointment. The incident resulted in one person dying and four others being injured. This incident underscores the importance of robust emergency preparedness and response plans for such scenarios​ (Healthcare Facilities Today)​.

Active Shooter Incident Analysis by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Dr. Levy from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine provides insights into hospital shooting incidents and the importance of preparedness. He emphasizes the need for systematic and well-practiced response plans to manage these high-stakes situations effectively​ (acep)​.

Download the Regroup Mass Notification Active Shooter Checklist.

4. Biohazard Incidents: Implementing a Mass Notification System (MNS) can significantly enhance a healthcare facility’s ability to manage biohazard incidents by providing immediate notifications to relevant departments, ensuring swift containment actions, and maintaining the safety of both healthcare workers and patients.

In 2023, key findings from chemical incident tracking indicated that hazardous chemical incidents resulted in injuries and hospitalizations. They required community evacuations, emphasizing the need for stringent biohazard waste management and emergency response protocols​ (Coming Clean Inc.)​.

5. Power Outages: Prolonged power outages, often caused by severe weather, can disrupt hospital operations. Coordinating with maintenance teams through an MNS can help restore critical systems and maintain patient care (Washington University)​ (BMS Group)​.
6. IT Disruptions: Alert IT teams of system outages or cyber-attacks, enabling quick resolution to maintain operational continuity.

In 2023, ransomware attacks significantly impacted healthcare facilities, with at least 141 hospitals directly affected. These attacks disrupted access to essential IT systems, including electronic health records (EHRs), forcing emergency departments to redirect ambulances and causing delays in patient care. The financial impact was substantial, with average data breach costs reaching $11 million per incident (HIPAA Journal).

How to Improve Routine Communication in Healthcare

Routine communication in healthcare settings can be inefficient and lead to information overload, which can cause essential messages to be missed.

Mass Notifications Systems facilitate daily operations and routine updates, reducing manual communication efforts and streamlining processes through automation. Targeting relevant users helps avoid notification fatigue, ensuring that critical messages are received and acted upon promptly.

Use Cases:

• Shift Changes: Efficiently manage and notify staff about shift changes using geo-mapping and polling features.
• Patient Appointments: Send reminders and updates to improve attendance and reduce no-shows.
• General Announcements: Disseminate important updates and policy changes to staff and patients.

MNS & Regulatory Compliance in Healthcare

Healthcare organizations must comply with stringent regulations, such as HIPAA and FTC guidelines, and failure to do so can result in heavy penalties.

Meeting regulatory requirements, such as HIPAA and FTC guidelines, is crucial for healthcare organizations. MNS help ensure compliance by facilitating prompt data breach notifications and protecting patient privacy and data security.

Key Points:

• HIPAA Compliance: Secure communication channels for sensitive patient information.
• FTC Health Breach Notification Rule: Timely notifications for data breaches involving health apps and other technologies.

Cost and Time Efficiency of MNS in Healthcare

Manual communication processes are time-consuming and costly, diverting resources from patient care.

MNS reduce manual communication efforts, and streamline processes through automation, saving time and costs. This efficiency allows healthcare providers to focus more on patient care and less on administrative tasks.

Regroup’s Solution for Healthcare

Regroup’s award-winning, cloud-based mass notification platform is designed to meet the specific needs of healthcare facilities. It enhances routine and emergency communications while ensuring HIPAA compliance. Regroup helps address pain points such as slow emergency response times and inefficient routine communication.

Key Benefits:

• Flexible Messaging: Unlimited admins and multiple ways to send and receive messages.
• Mobile App: Free app for sending alerts with just two taps.
• Conference Bridging: Quickly convene personnel to collaborate on patient care.
• Pre-Configured Templates: Fast, accurate information dissemination during crises.
• Automated Alerts: Receive alerts from FEMA, NOAA, and NWS.

Vital Features for Enhanced Healthcare Communication:

• Two-Way Messaging: Regroup supports two-way communications via Email, SMS, Text, and Mobile. Recipients can quickly respond with their geolocation data, images from their device’s camera, and audio recordings directly from the mobile application. All responses can be managed from within a single Regroup interface.
• Responsive Alert & Polling: Conduct polls and surveys to capture user responses for critical and non-critical notifications. Responsive alert polling allows admins to initiate a message with a series of responses as options. Additional functionality includes auto-retry for recipients who have not responded and geolocation gathering.
• Mapping: Regroup’s Geo-Mapping messaging capabilities include the option to create virtual fences and target notifications to contacts within selected areas or by live location. Depending on the delivery methods chosen, message content can be customized. Locations can be drawn on a map to create a custom recipient list or map regions can be saved and shared for recurring use. This feature is handy for managing shift changes and staff availability.
• Quick Messages: Pre-saved message templates include the message content, recipients, sender profile, delivery methods, and other messaging options. These templates can be sent with only two clicks from the web interface or Regroup Mobile app, streamlining communication during emergencies and routine operations.
• Panic Alerts: Regroup Mobile Panic Alerts allow admin users to create templated alert notifications for contacts to send inbound messages to your organization. Unlimited Panic Alerts can be made for specific divisions or locations, and the reporter can request their location using their device’s location services. This feature is an alternative to physical panic buttons, especially for clients with limited budgets for additional hardware.

Learn More About Regroup

Mass Notification Systems (MNS) play a crucial role in healthcare, ensuring effective communication during emergencies and routine operations. These systems provide a comprehensive solution to enhance healthcare facilities’ safety, efficiency, and compliance.

Download Our Comprehensive Guide

For more detailed insights on the benefits of Regroup Mass Notification in healthcare, download our Mass Notification Buyer’s Guide. This comprehensive resource covers essential features, vendor comparison checklists, and critical considerations to help you choose the best MNS for your healthcare facility.

Book a Demo Today

Are you interested in seeing how Regroup’s Mass Notification System can transform your healthcare facility’s communication strategy? Book a demo today to experience our award-winning platform in action.