Features & Requirements of a Nurse Call System

A Brief Introduction

What exactly is a nurse call system?  Many people are vaguely familiar with wireless nurse call systems but do not quite know the specifics of how they work. Wireless nurse call systems allow patients to contact their nurse or nurse’s station with ease. Some nurse call systems also allow the staff to stay in touch with each other, while other systems have integrated equipment or staff locator options.

Although the operation of a nurse call system is pretty easy to understand, the system itself is a little complex and has various components. In this article, we at Unity Connected, will get you acquainted with the unique features of a nurse call system and why they are so essential.

Common Features of Nurse Call Systems

A fully operating nurse call system serves as a lifeline between medical staff and patients. Wireless nurse call systems are available with various options and plenty of features for both staff and patients. The most common essential components of a nurse call system are as follows:

1. Wall Station

The wall station holds the speaker and microphone that allows the patient and nurse to communicate. Very often the station will have a pillow speaker as well. Ventilators can be connected to the nurse call station via the wall station, thereby enabling alerts to be sent to the nurses’ station whenever any connected equipment alarms. This notification will reach the nurse station immediately.

2. Code Blue

Code blue signalizes that a patient is in need of immediate help. When the code blue button is pressed by any staff member, a group of alerts will immediately go off in the patient’s room, outside the patient’s room and at the nurses’ station.

3. Desk Console 

A desk console is similar to a telephone and allows the nurse or the unit secretary to phone or answer phone calls from the patient’s room.

4. Bed Cable 

A bed cable allows the patient’s bed to be connected to the wall station. With a bed alarm, the nurse is notified when a patient who should not leave the bed is trying to get up. It also enables a patient to call the nurses’ station via a button on the rail of their bed.

Unique Components of a Nurse Call System

1. Master Station

The master station is generally located at the nurses’ station and helps both hearing and visually impaired patients as it enables visible and audible enunciation of calls. The master station has two fundamental pieces of equipment to enable this function; a telephone headset with an LCD screen and a PC-based central console with telephone abilities.

The central console assists in prioritizing calls, and checking room numbers and call status. It also tracks and displays the time of the commencement of the call. Hospital organizers can also program the master station for call reminders based on a pre-determined time for call attendance.

2. Room Stations

 Room stations allow staff or patients to send signals for assistance. Communication is often started with a simple press of a button or the pull of a cord which sends a signal for nurse assistance or code blue.

Essentially, a room station is located at the bedside of a patient. The button is generally on the pillow speaker which also has other functions such as television, temperature, and lighting control. You can connect other enhanced functions to the patient station in order to monitor bed rail position and medical equipment.

There are other possible room stations such as the shower station, toilet station, and caregiver-initiated station. Read below to learn more.

• Toilet Station

A toilet station is a basic pullcord that enables patients to request assistance for getting on and off the toilet. It is strategically located to allow for easy activation for all patients.

• Shower Station

A shower station is similar to the toilet station except that it is designed to manage the wet environment of a shower. 

• Caregiver-Initiated Station 

A caregiver-initiated station is generally a push button mounted on a wall and enables caregivers to call the master station for help.

3. Staff And Duty Stations 

Staff and duty stations are often located in hallways or other remote areas that caregivers access. They are placed quite strategically for caregivers to be aware of calls even if they are in break rooms, linen rooms, nourishment stations, or other such areas.

A duty station has a visual and audible indication of a patient call, while a staff station also provides two-way voice communication as well.

4. Dome Lights 

Dome lights are multicolored LEDs that are placed in front of every patient room with a call initiation station. These lights help to expedite the response time as nurses can easily locate the room in need of help. Dome lights also communicate any additional information to caregivers or nurses. Some of the information is as follows:

• Flashing patterns to determine the level of need.
• Different colors for different types of emergencies.
• Often used together with the staff locator feature to indicate the type of caregiver needed in the patient’s room.

Dome lights are wall mounted to be visible from the nurse station for the maximum level of effectiveness. If they should not work, then zone lights are used in order to quickly locate which particular patient room is in need of help.

Let’s Wrap Up!

An advanced wireless nurse call system will improve communication and workflow within a hospital. The basic and unique features of the system work to achieve their fundamental goal. We recommend you get in touch with Unity Connected and find the best nurse call solution for your hospital or senior citizen care center. We pride ourselves in offering highly advanced options for our clients. Order your nurse call solution today and help your staff and patients communicate efficiently

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