Lua Blog Cultivating a Culture of Communication in Mobile Healthcare

Communication is one of the biggest issues facing those that work in the challenging, yet rewarding subset of hospice and home healthcare. The amount of patients opting to receive care at home continues to increase, yet year over year, retention rates within the home health and post-acute industries continue to decrease, causing strain on the workforce. Insufficient communication causes the in-home health and mobile healthcare fields to experience growing difficulty in nursing staff retention and recruitment.Since the majority of the healthcare process and administrative duties take place within the home of the patient, it can be difficult to relay important information between caregivers and the home office and between patient care teams. Oftentimes, the lack of communication and support can lead caregivers and skilled nurses to feel isolated, instead of part of a team or community, negatively impacting organizational culture, morale, and patient care.Agencies able to identify ways of alleviating these stressors and inefficiencies to improve work environments are able to retain caregivers and providers at higher rates. Through providing a culture of support and open communication, providers can feel comfortable and more willing to reach out for assistance and aid.The benefits of improving organizational communication processes within home healthcare agencies and mobile care organizations include linking providers, enabling collaboration, and giving providers a voice. Creating a company culture that fosters and positively reinforces collaboration and open communication can lead to positive experiences for all stakeholders, most importantly, allowing patients to have the best experience and the best care possible.Through providing communication channels and secure, real-time access to data and resources, providers can feel confident in their decision-making and the quality of care provided to patients. Through convenient messaging and calling, providers are able to instantly collaborate with each patient's care team, giving caregivers and skilled nurses a full and updated patient profile. Secure mobile messaging solutions give providers the tools and features they need to remain connected and informed, for improved processes and experiences.