3 upgrades of health establishments with measurable impacts

Hospitals in the country face financial stress. According to Medicare Cost Report Data Data analyzed by Final health careHospitals have spent an average of $ 230.5 million on operating costs in 2022 while providing only $ 223.7 million in patient net revenues. With such tight margins, the administrators of the health care facility must be strategic in their capital improvements.

Investment in lighting, electrical and networking systems can be useful because they have an impact directly and indirectly on the patient and the staff and can generate operational efficiency.

Consider these lighting, electricity and networking upgrades for your health establishment.

Reign your hospital lighting strategy

Lighting design can improve clinical work flows in the many different spaces of medical centers. “Lighting plays a more important role than many people would assume it,” said Randy Mortensen, executive vice-president of world sales and marketing at Leviton.

The corridors, patients’ rooms and administrative areas can have high levels of glare, which can tire the eyes of the staff who must spend hours in the spaces. “Specific lighting design factors can minimize glare in an environment to improve the comfort of clinical personnel,” explains Mortensen, which recommends the resource Illuminating engineering company RP-29, lighting for hospitals and health establishments To determine the appropriate light levels.

Several studies have shown that access to daylight,, Circadian lighting And Adjustable lighting can improve the occupants’ experience and reduce the duration of the patient’s stay. “The use of LED technology and the modification of color temperatures to complete the time of day can help patients stay awake during the day and fall asleep earlier at night, who both support faster recovery times,” explains Mortensen.

With many lighting systems left 24/7 in health care establishments, the transition to LED lighting with their advanced adjustment capacities and their energy efficiency – 18% to 44% more efficient than fluorescent alternatives – can lead to relatively short yield on investment, known as Mortensen.

In addition, intelligent controls on board LED lights allow teams to ensure that lighting is sensitive to a range of factors, such as day of day, natural light levels, occupation and security. These are all essential in health care environments which must navigate the recovery of often competent patients, clinical precision, occupants safety and energy costs management.

“Discount programs and energy service companies can help facilities in the latest lighting control technology for a price fraction that many administrators think they are paying,” he notes.

Do not take the power of the hospital for acquired

A reliable source of food is essential to hospitals. The Mortensen team in Leviton often sees health establishments needing electric updates to comply with the current code and security guidelines. The components upgrades are also common to improve helpfulness with technology and improve patient experience.

For example, as Recommended by the mixed commissionMedical quality feeding strips should only be used in patients of patients to prevent vital equipment from stopping if the feed bands are overloaded. As more states adopt the last National Electric CodeLeviton provides that more medical centers will move on to the use of modular wiring systems that meet the torque requirements intended to reduce the risk of bulk electrical connections, which can cause fires.

Updating electrical containers to integrate USB load ports into patients’ rooms and waiting areas can help people stay connected to their home, school or work responsibilities. The apparently small detail of the availability of the load of USB devices can help reduce stress by ensuring patients and their guests that power is cable in an omnipresent way in the entire installation. Traditional sockets and adapters generally offer a net load while the new Type C USB or Type A provides more powerful 60 watts, twice as fast for mobile phones, tablets and laptops.

Mortensen explains: “Hospitals are strategically focusing on the creation of a first higher impression and the strengthening of their brand, recognizing that each detail contributes to the global experience of visitors.

He also adds that electric modernization costs can be reduced using innovative commercial products with faster termination features to comply with tight installation hours, as well as the possibility of exchanging hot devices, reducing downtime for critical systems.

Adopt a Ulan architecture approach

Internet connectivity is essential to the operation of medical devices, and as the number of devices continues to increase, a The installation network systems are at the heart of its operation. But the concerns of technological obsolescence are legitimate, known as Mortensen. “Many facilities operators are concerned about spending the money they have today on something they are not sure of tomorrow.”

To respond to these concerns, avant-garde solutions like the Leviton Ulan gain a significant traction. An ULAN approach is designed to provide a unified and flexible infrastructure for intelligent buildings, with an architecture that considers a physical layer that supports converged applications on a single structured wiring system. This approach allows installations to effectively manage various applications, from lighting and safety to CVC and critical medical devices, while offering the scalability and adaptability necessary for their future operations against the evolution of technological demands.

Each day, there are new use cases which depend on an IP infrastructure, such as intelligent beds, remote monitoring of patients, robotic surgery and telemedicine. Mortensen adds that all of these applications require high performance category cables, such as CAT 6A Poe ++, which can provide both data and power.

Hospital operators often turn to Telecommunications industry associationwhich provides network density recommendations based on the type of part and use, to help plan infrastructure upgrades. Given the amount of data that data must be safe on these lines, Mortensen advises the planning of future needs and the adoption of an ULAN approach during the decision of your structured wiring system architecture. “Having a robust infrastructure will pay dividends on the road,” he said.

The hospital leaders of the hospital must plan the short and long term. For example, a relatively simple upgrade of the type of wiring can rationalize operations today and extend the life of networks and other critical systems.

“You don’t want these systems to drop, as this will directly affect patient care,” said Mortensen. “As technology is always going ahead, you must have foresight and preparation to adopt new ideas as you go.”

To find out how Leviton can help your health establishment upgrade with measurable impacts, visit https://leviton.com/healthcare.