Key Benefits of Mobile Scanning for Healthcare Teams

| Healthcare

scanning multiple barcodes on blood bags

In the world of healthcare, efficiency is everything. Even a few seconds saved when accessing patient information can make all the difference when it comes to coordinating care and providing the best possible service. As a result, healthcare providers nationwide are turning to mobile barcode scanning solutions to bolster the speed and cost-efficiency of their pharmacy and care operations, providing superior results for patients and boosting their bottom line in the process. In short, if you’re interested in maximizing the efficiency and profitability of your healthcare processes, then mobile data capture should be at the top of your list.

At Scandit, we take pride in helping healthcare providers advance the field of patient care, one scan at a time. Over the past decade, our team of mobile data capture experts have been developing enterprise-grade barcode scanning solutions to help healthcare teams cut costs and improve patient outcomes using modern smart devices. Today, we’ll be filling you in on some of the unique advantages smart device-based mobile barcode scanning can bring to healthcare teams to help you decide whether it’s a worthwhile investment for your enterprise.

Streamlining Patient Bedside Care

As patient’s needs evolve and expand, effective bedside care has never been more important. In light of increasing treatment needs, healthcare providers are looking into new tools and technologies to automate and streamline certain bedside care tasks, such as identifying specific patients and updating EHRs (Electronic Health Records). In medical environments, barcodes are used to identify patients, prescription drugs and important specimens (like blood). Traditionally, healthcare professionals use peripheral barcode scanning hardware to access medical health records, track specimens at points of collection, and record or schedule medication administration. And while these hardware solutions do support bedside care efficiency, they’re also incredibly expensive—especially once you factor in the costly backend systems required to run them.

Smart device-based mobile barcode scanning is a cost-efficient alternative to bulky, expensive peripheral equipment. Using technology solutions like the Scandit Barcode Scanner SDK, your team can integrate world-class scanning capabilities into mobile apps for smartphones, tablets and wearables—and eliminate the need for traditional scanning software. This approach empowers healthcare professionals to identify specimens, patients, medications and more without relying on dedicated scanning hardware. Because healthcare staff use smartphones in their daily lives, smart device-based mobile barcode scanning is incredibly intuitive, driving faster adoption across your workforce. You can even adopt a BYOD (bring-your-own-device) approach to have healthcare employees use their own personal devices to further reduce total cost of ownership. Patient bedside care apps make supply procurement, specimen identification, EHR access and medication verification effortless, fostering leaner and more effective patient care operations.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (a leading UK hospital trust) integrated mobile computer vision into a smartphone-based app to create a software-based barcode scanning solution for scanning patient wristbands, assigned beds, and clinics and operating theatres to which patients are transported. Using a Scandit-powered patient management app, Leeds NHS Trust staff captured barcodes with unrivaled speed and accuracy—enabling real-time patient information updates to the electronic whiteboard at the nurses’ station. Check out our full case study to see how the Scandit solution optimized patient care routines for the Leeds NHS Trust.

Optimizing Pharmacy Workflows

Bedside care isn’t the only healthcare-related usage scenario for mobile barcode scanning. Many healthcare providers leverage smart device-based data capture solutions to simplify and speed up pharmacy workflows as well. Pharmacies typically use peripheral barcode scanning hardware to take inventory, identify prescriptions and fulfill prescription orders—experiencing the same cost inefficiencies and backend frustrations as bedside care specialists. The power and universality of modern smartphones makes them an excellent alternative to dedicated barcode scanners, providing the same scanning performance (and additional functionality) for a fraction of the price.

Over the past decade, pharmacy apps have changed the way healthcare professionals approach inventory management and fulfillment—all thanks to the power of Scandit’s mobile barcode scanning technology. Our healthcare partners use pharmacy apps and Scandit-powered smartphones to quickly and accurately perform fulfillment, inventory management and prescription identification, driving better results for pharmacists and patients alike. These barcode scanning-enabled apps can also be used to access useful drug-related information (like side effects and substance interactions) and confirm prescriptions that are ready for pickup, encouraging smoother pharmacy operations.

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It’s important to note that mobile pharmacy apps can be used to drive revenue for healthcare providers as well. Here’s an example: A few years ago, we partnered with Cardinal Health to improve their Order Express app for iOS and Android devices. Cardinal Health used this cost-efficient application to replace their dedicated scanning devices, implementing the Scandit Barcode Scanner SDK into their mobile order entry app to help clients manage pharmaceutical orders. Not only did our solution improve Cardinal Health’s scan accuracy by 25%, but it also significantly reduced hardware costs and TCO, generating huge return on investment for the Fortune 500 healthcare services company. Check out this case study to learn more about how we helped to streamline Cardinal Health’s processes and generate revenue through our powerful mobile order entry solution.

Managing Pathological Specimens

Securing the collection and delivery of pathological specimens is a critical component to ensuring positive patient outcomes. Medical courier service provider ERS Medical switched from PDAs to  Scandit-powered entry-level smartphones to improve barcode scanning and increase the overall efficiency of its courier drivers. The drivers found that the barcode scanning-enabled smartphones performed considerably faster and were very straightforward to use in all delivery scenarios.  The results of implementing the Scandit solution include a 50% reduction in the time required to scan pathological specimens, considerably more efficient delivery workflows, and a nearly 90% reduction in hardware costs.

To learn more about ERS Medical’s experience with Scandit mobile computer vision, read the case study.

The Scandit Solution

Healthcare organizations use a range of barcode types, including the UPC-B and variations of EAN codes. Considering this diversity of symbologies, it’s important to invest in a barcode scanning solution that can support the barcodes relevant to your operations while providing a smooth scanning experience for users. The Scandit Barcode Scanner SDK offers the same enterprise-grade speed and accuracy of dedicated scanning hardware and supports a wide variety of barcode symbologies, bringing flexibility to your healthcare scanning processes. Scandit-powered smart devices can handle even the most challenging barcodes with ease, including poorly lit, warped or blurry codes. Our omnidirectional barcode scanning technology also allows device users to scan codes from any angle in seconds, enabling faster and more reliable healthcare operations.

Empower Your Healthcare Team With Mobile Scanning Today

Be sure to call or message Scandit if you’re interested in learning more about our comprehensive healthcare scanning solutions and how they can align your organization for long-term success. You can also contact us for more information on how to create or refine your own medicine barcode scanning app, pharmacy barcodes scanner or healthcare barcode scanner. We would be happy to connect you with the resources your team needs to capitalize on mobile scanning technology.