{"id":4594,"date":"2020-11-16T12:58:07","date_gmt":"2020-11-16T20:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.poly.com\/?p=4594"},"modified":"2020-11-16T12:58:07","modified_gmt":"2020-11-16T20:58:07","slug":"hands-free-devices-for-frontline-healthcare-workers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.poly.com\/hands-free-devices-for-frontline-healthcare-workers\/","title":{"rendered":"Hands-free Devices for Frontline Healthcare Workers \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

When COVID-19 hit Denmark in March, Kasper Nesager-Hansen, normally a freelance tech journalist and author, felt compelled to put his skills as a Social and Healthcare Assistant to work at a hospital in Copenhagen.<\/p>\n

Kasper\u2019s experience working on the front lines of the crisis really drove home how important the right tech can be in a healthcare setting. Faced with extraordinary protective measures when treating patients in a COVID-19 unit, it quickly becomes clear to Kasper how counterproductive \u2013 even obsolete \u2013 the hospital\u2019s legacy communication equipment was while working with patients in isolation.<\/p>\n

Calls between staff across the hospital are a critical aspect of patient care. When working in a COVID isolation room, supervising nurses often need to call through changes in medication or update staff on a patient\u2019s treatment.<\/p>\n

The hospital\u2019s handheld phones don\u2019t support Bluetooth, so nurses and doctors need to remove contaminated personal protective equipment (PPE) before exiting the COVID-19 unit to return a call.<\/p>\n

Kasper explains, \u201cReceiving a call meant exiting the room, taking off all the PPE equipment and sterilizing myself, which could take around 10 minutes. Missed calls are the norm, requiring us to call colleagues back. It was an unnecessary waste of time and money, as I needed a new set of PPE before I could go back to caring for my patient.\u201d<\/p>\n

VOICE-ENABLED COMMANDS PUT HIM IN CONTROL<\/h4>\n

Kasper was surprised that hospital staff didn\u2019t have the hands-free communication tools that are relatively common these days. So, he started using his own smartphone, pairing it with his Poly Voyager 5200<\/a><\/span> earpiece.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, if I\u2019m called by a colleague I can say \u201canswer\u201d and receive the call, without having to remove my protective gear, stop and go out of the room or pause the care of my patient,\u201d Kasper says and continues:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe voice control feature enabled me to answer calls without touching my phone with contaminated gloves. The sound quality is great \u2013 with noise cancellation my colleagues were able to hear my voice despite background noise.\u201d<\/p>\n

TAKING OUR COVID-19 EXPERIENCE TO INITIATE LONG-TERM CHANGE<\/h4>\n

\"VoyagerThere\u2019s a huge need for wireless communication in the healthcare sector \u2014 both during and beyond the pandemic. And, when coupled with a Bluetooth-enabled phone, the Poly Voyager 5200<\/a><\/span> has proven its value in a live healthcare setting.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing part of the social and healthcare sector in Denmark, I experience firsthand the challenges in delivering patient care. Voice-controlled headsets can be a time-saver and is something we need in the healthcare sector as we\u2019ll have more time to care for our patients,\u201d Kasper said. \u201cCOVID-19 has shown us that the healthcare sector can benefit from the communication tools on the market and it\u2019s not a big cost to the sector compared to the reduced waste of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about Poly headsets, visit https:\/\/www.poly.com\/headsets<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Images \u00a9Kasper Nesager-Hansen 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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