Breakdown in communication can cause entire organization structures to fail. In long term care homes, this is particularly true. There are many moving pieces that require constant and thorough communication and reporting. With the advancement of technology, many of these issues are not just preventable, but they can also streamline and create efficiency within a long term care home. One of these tools is Microsoft Teams. In this article, we’re going to break down the pros of introducing Microsoft Teams into your long term care residences.

Microsoft has standardized Teams for communication and collaboration among its thousands of employees. Hundreds of companies across diverse sectors are now using Microsoft Teams for quicker decision making and embracing a more social and fun way to communicate.

Coordinating Patient Care

Microsoft Teams is easily integrated with various patient care software such as Kronos, Rapid Circle and more. According to Microsoft, “It provides for partner integration with electronic health records (EHR) systems and enables care providers to communicate about patient care in real-time within Teams’ secure platform.”

Issue Tracking and Reporting

A challenge that many long term care homes face is tracking resident falls. Often times, careworkers get tied up handling other time-sensitive tasks that they forget to log a fall, which could then impact the resident’s care. Microsoft Teams is accessible on all devices, including smartphones. Tracking resident falls can be easily incorporated into Microsoft Teams and take up as little as 30 seconds of their time.

Sharing of point of care notes and reporting is also made easy with Microsoft Teams as it can be customized and integrated with healthcare-specific solutions.

Collaboration and Leadership

Social collaboration tools such as Microsoft Teams have taken collaboration and communication among team members to the next level. For several decades intra-company email as been the bread and butter of communication. But now, our inboxes are full of unread emails.

Employees have to remember to CC the right team members to collaborate on an issue and after a dozen emails, the chain of thinking has been lost. Decision making slows down and mistakes are made in executing projects. Microsoft is now ushering in the new age of team communication by leveraging the power of social media and direct messaging tools that the new generation of workers are familiar with. Need to instantly communicate with a team member to resolve a problem or get a quick answer? Don’t send an email or a voicemail – send a direct message to your colleague through Microsoft Teams. Continue chatting back and forth and until the issue is resolved. Need to set up a team of collaborators around a temporary project or a permanent department? Don’t organize a meeting. Instead, set up a new Team or Channel in Microsoft Teams and start chatting, sharing files and data or even jumping on an instant video conference, right from your laptop or mobile phone.

Streamline Administrative Workflow

Microsoft Teams allows its users to simplify and streamline administrative workflows such as shift scheduling and sharing of announcements. For a long term care home that experiences 24-hour shift changes amongst its nurses and PSWs, this gives them an opportunity to connect in a common digital space that is visible to all staff and management without having breakdowns in communication.

Microsoft Teams has the ability to transform long term care homes’ productivity and efficiency and is embedded in most Microsoft Office 365 subscriptions. Ask us how to best implement Microsoft Teams within your organization.

Additional Links:

• 15-minute demo on Microsoft Teams: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH2seLS5Wb0&feature=emb_title
• Microsoft Teams in Healthcare: https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/microsoft-365/microsoft-teams/healthcare-solutions