How Unified Communications is Transforming Healthcare

Source: UC Today 

UC cures healthcare communication problems

Communication is at the heart of any successful organisation, or business.  

When people can’t communicate properly, mistakes happen, and efficiency drops. In the healthcare industry, the wrong communication strategy could put lives at risk.  

Fortunately, Unified Communications is rapidly transforming the way healthcare groups operate. By linking systems of devices and must-have applications in the healthcare space, UC enhances collaboration, communication, and productivity, while preserving the flow of knowledge.  

At every level in the healthcare environment, Unified Communications can empower clinicians, administration, and care professionals to deliver better outcomes.  

The Major Benefits of UC for Healthcare 

For years, clinicians and surgeons relied on clunky communication systems to stay connected, causing a loss of around 45 minutes in productive time each day. Outdated and disconnected communication systems lead to huge problems with productivity and performance.  

On the one hand, lost productivity causes fiscal problems for healthcare groups on a massive scale. On the other, communication issues can also damage the efficacy of care. With a unified environment for communication, healthcare professionals can:  

• Reduce inefficiencies: Unified Communications pulls all communication technology together in the same environment. This enables users to easily check patient queries, connect with specialists, and collaborate, all in the same environment. The single–pane-of-glass removes the issues that would otherwise waste clinician time
• Improve patient experience: It’s not just efficiency that’s on the line in healthcare organisations, but human lives. UC empowers teams to respond more rapidly to issues by ensuring ongoing, connected communications. A UC solution can even offer access to automation strategies that help to keep all staff on the same page
• Better data alignment: When all of your communication and data solutions are connected in the same environment, it’s easier to make decisions based on that aligned information. Healthcare organisations can get insights into things like peak call times for appointments, or trends in potential healthcare issues, allowing for better staffing decisions
• Access to better collaboration: Unified Communication isn’t just about connecting voice, fax, and video anymore. These solutions also come with access to collaboration tools that allow professionals to collaborate more effectively. Groups could even collaborate with medical specialists from around the world to diagnose an issue together
• Room for evolution: An aligned communication system in the cloud, provided via UCaaS, could also open the door to innovation for future healthcare companies. For instance, access to UCaaS tools could allow companies to offer more telehealth opportunities and remote care support in the years ahead

Transforming the Healthcare Landscape 

UC has the potential to evolve every aspect of the healthcare landscape. Even on top of the benefits mentioned above, there are further advantages to consider, like the ability to preserve and secure information about patients in a compliant environment. As the demand on healthcare companies continues to grow, UC could be the salve that cures a host of common communication problems.