Clinical Mobility Implementation Activities

December 14, 2021

Implementation of mobile devices in the healthcare setting doesnt need to be a challenging effort as long as one understands the step,s and has the supporting "standard" documents that help the process along. In this blog, I describe the steps that I myself have used to achieve a stress-free and successful implementation.

1. Clinical Mobility Assessment Preparation

• Identify staff (nurses, care team members and other mobile workers) to be interviewed.

• Communicate to selected staff the purpose of the assessment and interviews.

• Schedule all interviews.

• Identify a team of individuals who will be responsible for reviewing and approving use cases, mobile device capabilities, workflows, P&P, training and examining potential impact on operations and workflows.

• Identify goals, objectives, expected ROI for each Mobility project; success criteria and performance metrics.

• Provide existing P&P, documentation, and training for current phone/mobile device usage.

2. Perform Clinical Staff Interviews for Understanding and Requirements

• Current communications flows; what works and what needs improvement.

• How mobility solutions currently support uses cases and workflows.

• Will it be used to access, receive, transmit or store patient health information inside or outside of your organization's internal networks or systems.

• How mobility solutions can support additional uses cases and workflows.

• Satisfaction level of key users; this will provide useful information to the project sponsors when assessing current vs future capabilities.

• What are existing policies and procedures relating to the use of mobile technology for clinical and operational purposes.

• Need for other Apps

o Use case for Google Mapping Services (GMS); Access to Google mapping services is required for rendering users on a mapping interface.

o The Windows PC client is used for the desk bound user that can still initiate PTT messaging and voice with the mobile users.

3. Clinical Mobility Assessment

• Tour and observe unit operations.

• Interview clinical leadership and unit staff.

• Understand use cases for Google Mapping Services (GMS) and Windows PC Client (1 device).

• Review current P&P, documentation, and training documents.

• Document and present current use cases, capabilities and workflows using the Features, Functions and Apps Check List.

• Customer validates the current use cases, capabilities, and workflows.

• Perform an assessment and gap analysis;

o Map operational and functional requirements.

o Identify future use cases, capabilities and workflows.

o Identify opportunities for Smart Phone device to better service unit operations.

o Develop and present Findings and Recommendations; future use cases, capabilities and workflows for the unit.

o Customer approves the future use cases, capabilities and workflows for the unit.

4. Configuration Requirements and Mobile Device Testing and Validation

• Share assessment findings with mobile engineers for configuring mobile device.

• Assist in testing of mobile devices.

• Oversee configuration validation and EUT with Customer Project team.

• Receive approval from Customer Project team.

5. Mobile Device Management (MDM) Solution

• MDM includes software that provides software distribution, policy management, inventory management, security management and service management for smartphones and tablets. From a security standpoint, the implementation of an MDM platform is part of a larger EMM system.

• Identify essential criteria for selecting mandatory features and options

6. Privacy and Security Considerations

• Decide — Decide whether mobile devices will be used to access, receive, transmit or store patient health information or used as part of your organization's internal networks or systems.

• Assess — Consider how mobile devices affect the risks to the health information your organization holds.

• Identify — Identify your organization's mobile device risk management strategy, including privacy and security safeguards.

• Determine if organization needs to undergo a HIPAA assessment. Considerations

• Develop, document, and implement — Develop, document and implement the organization's mobile device policies and procedures to safeguard health information.

• Train — Conduct mobile device privacy and security awareness and training for providers and professionals.

7. Create End User Training Program; training curriculum, materials, schedules

• PHI responsibility awareness.

• Password training, including complexity policies, sharing of user ID/password combinations, use of biometrics.

• Email security, including phishing and other corporate identity theft activities that can lead to impersonation attacks.

• What to do when a mobile device is lost or stolen.

• MDM training, including details of how it works, and address privacy concerns. Cover what functions/data on the device the HDO has control over.

• Phone Features

• User Options

• App training

• Battery management and charging

• Sanitizing

• Storage

• IT Support/Help Desk