Supporting a Mobile Workforce
with Encrypted Smartphone and Tablet Messaging

Enhancing Communications and Workflow

There is no doubt that smartphones and tablets have already made an impact within your hospital. From
medical apps to EMR access, to phone calls and messages, clinicians and administrators now rely on these
devices heavily. Your IT team has probably already had requests from physicians and other staff to receive
critical communications on them.

In order to achieve the fast, accurate, and secure communications that are the underpinnings of patient
care and safety, you need to incorporate smartphones and tablets in the right way. With Amcom Mobile
Connect™, you can simplify communications and strengthen care by using your smartphone or tablet for secure code alerts, patient updates, lab results, consult requests, and much more.

In fact, incorporating smartphones and tablets alongside other types of communication devices enables your organization to support the varied, modern requirements of different staff members.

New white paper download:

Ten Predictions for 2012 on Smartphones in Hospitals

Key Features of Amcom Mobile Connect

• Separates critical messages from less important emails and text messages
• Secure delivery of messages and responses
• Automatic delivery receipts for messages
• Active acknowledgement of message and free-form text response
• Directory look-up and user authentication
• Ability to initiate messages to other users on any type of device from a device running Amcom Mobile Connect
• Remote application wipe and administration
• Leverages cellular and Wi-Fi networks
• Supports a variety of devices to accommodate hospital-employed and independent physicians (BlackBerry®, iPhone®, Android®, Cisco®)

Secure Mobile Messaging for Electronic protected health information (ePHI)

People can now use smartphones and tablets to connect reliably and securely with others in the organization. They can access the full directory of accurate contact information, send messages to smartphones and other devices, and ensure critical communications are logged—all with security, traceability, and reliability in mind.

In fact, Amcom Mobile Connect uses industry standard best practices to ensure the protection of sensitive electronic protected health information in accordance with guidelines from HIPAA and the HITECH Act. This includes a variety of security features, including encryption, application lock, automated message removal, and password-protected inbox. Administrators can also complete a remote device wipe to remove Amcom Mobile Connect messages from a smartphone that has been lost or stolen.

• These capabilities contrast sharply with the limitations of texting (SMS), which lacks the message traceability and encryption that could lead to a security breach. In November 2011, the Joint Commission stated that texting orders is not acceptable.

The Importance of Two-Way Messaging

Hospitals today know the importance of providing users with the ability to respond to a message either with a predefined set of answers or free-form text. These features not only enable users to respond quickly with their availability, but they also provide important information and instruction. With two-way messaging, administrators can also define critical escalation points based on users’ replies, ensuring proper response.

Audit Trail and Full Traceability for Closed-Loop Communications

When a message first arrives, a delivery receipt is sent back to the sender. Message recipients have the ability to actively acknowledge or ignore the message, which is then also transmitted back to the sender. In addition to acknowledgement, users can respond to a message using free-form text or templates. Responses are kept with the original message in system log files for continuity purposes.

Administrators also require a full audit trail, including the ability to run reports on the timing of message delivery and how quickly read receipts were returned from each user’s smartphone. This ensures messages are read in a timely fashion and eliminates complaints from users that they didn’t receive a message.

Sending messages to any user in your organization's directory - on any device

Mobile users want to be able to quickly and easily send messages to the right person on the right device from their smartphone or tablet. This requires instant access to the organization’s directory. Amcom Mobile Connect allows individual users to communicate to other individuals or groups via secure messages that are also traceable for audit purposes.

View the "Mobility in Healthcare" blog written by Amcom Software CEO, Chris Heim.

Changing Your Pager Strategy Over Time

Many organizations are undertaking a long-term approach to replacing a portion of their pagers with smartphones. It's an important decision. Amcom Software and our parent company, USA Mobility, offer a full range of paging solutions to enable you to transition smoothly. Learn more

Amcom Mobile Connect: Everybody Wins

Incorporating smartphones and tablets generates benefits for everyone involved. Physicians can message with their smartphone or tablet. IT support teams can manage this new requirement effectively and securely while supporting other necessary communications tools as required.
 

Contact Sales to find out how Amcom Software could help streamline your communications.