Implementation of smart phones to facilitate in-hospital telephone communication: Challenges, successes and lessons from a neonatal intensive care unit

Abstract

Implementation Lessons 1. Mobile telephony use in the hospital setting is complex and sub-optimal implementation of mobile communication technology can create inefficiencies in clinical workflow 2. Objective measurement of mobile technology's impact on clinical communication workflow is necessary to identify and remediate associated inefficiencies in real-time 3. Functionality between mobile applications and devices should be evaluated when implementing technology, particularly when an application is non-native to a device 4. Continual collaboration between front-line clinicians and technical teams allows for early identification of adverse impacts from, and optimization of, mobile communication technology implementation.

Keywords: Clinical communication; Hospital communications systems; Smartphones; Software applications; Telecommunications.