Northwell Health is broadening its use of a suite of safety and security technologies designed to keep its employees and patients safe network-wide.
WHY IT MATTERS
Working with Motorola Solutions, the New York health system is deploying AI-powered video security and analytics tools, bidirectional radio communications, mass notification and panic button technologies to better detect, analyze and manage threats.
The expanded security implementation – designed to protect staff and patients while prioritizing care during health emergencies – builds on Northwell Health’s existing and extensive safety and crisis management framework.
Northwell, which comprises nearly 30 hospitals and more than 1,000 outpatient facilities – is expanding use of AI-enabled Avigilon security cameras, which have analytics that can identify unusual activity or potential threats and alert security personnel and clinical personnel via two-way radios and other push-to-talk devices.
It is also broadening its use of a scalable digital communication designed to share voice and data across the many different devices that hospital staff uses to communicate – two-way radios, smartphones and more – to help connect security teams, medical staff and administrators at a moment’s notice.
“Managing security across a growing health network can be complex,” said Mark Swensen, senior manager of operations for security, safety and emergency management at Northwell Health, in a statement.
“Investing in a security system where the technologies work together simplifies scaling new installations when hospitals and clinics join our network,” he added. “We can add more security cameras or expand radio use across multiple sites without the challenges that can arise when security systems don’t easily connect.”
THE LARGER TREND
Northwell, already the largest health system in New York State, got even bigger this spring after its merger with Nuvance Heath.
Even before that, the health system had been making big investments in tools and IT for the safety and wellbeing of its staff and patients, as with its deployment several years ago of advanced weapons detection technology.
Northwell’s longtime president and CEO Michael Dowling – who announced his retirement this past May – wrote for Healthcare IT News in 2023 about how AI can help keep hospital staff safe.
“Unsafe work environments create job dissatisfaction, burn out, and low levels of productivity,” Dowling wrote. “It is an unsustainable reality – and yet there are accessible and effective multifactorial solutions.
“In addition to adopting new technologies, senior leaders should also consider prioritizing the creation and implementation of comprehensive workplace violence prevention plans,” he added, “then socializing them via training company-wide.”
ON THE RECORD
“Northwell Health is creating a more secure work environment where doctors, nurses and clinical teams can focus on what they do best: taking care of patients,” said Scott Schoepel, VP of video security & access control at Motorola.
“They’re setting the standard for security and safety in healthcare. We’re proud to provide solutions that blend seamlessly into their routines, offering peace of mind in feeling safe and protected so they can focus on caring for people who need them most.”
Mike Miliard is executive editor of Healthcare IT News
Email the writer: [email protected]
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS publication.
