Centrak IoT protects healthcare workers

  • January 29, 2020
  • imc

Centrak is expanding its IoT offering to address increasing safety concerns for healthcare workers. The Pennsylvania company specialises in location, security and sensing services for the healthcare industry.
 
It has announced the availability of three products that address threats to workplace safety. Healthcare workers face a significantly higher risk of assault compared with staff in other industries; in fact, the American Nurses Association indicates one in four nurses have been attacked on the job. Centrak’s suite of workplace safety products is intended to help healthcare providers respond to this concern.
 
The devices include badges for healthcare workers under duress or in man-down scenarios that can be activated through various methods, including squeeze, pull-away, button-press or tilt when the worker is positioned horizontally. New pull-cord units and life-safety panic buttons process events by activating customisable alerts, including audible alarms and notifications pushed to wireless phones and other mobile devices.
 
The products were developed to integrate with Centrak’s security-grade networks, which prioritise duress alerts over other network activity and provide acknowledgements back to the device in the form of vibration or LED activation, requirements for enterprise-class technology.
 
The firm’s Edge partner ecosystem includes more than two hundred systems integrators and integrated product providers, enabling end users to derive value from both legacy technologies and new safety-oriented products.
 
“Unfortunately, we’ve been watching the healthcare workplace become increasingly unsafe,” said Centrak chief commercial officer Wil Lukens. “In response, Centrak has worked diligently to extend the reach of our market-leading products to ensure the safety of today’s healthcare professionals. In the last six months, we’ve witnessed a significant increase in demand for these from customers intending to leverage their existing Centrak systems as well as those making new location services investments primarily for the purpose of protecting their employees.”
 
One such user is Parkview Health System in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The long-time Centrak user recently activated their nurse call cancellation badges to add duress alert capabilities and protect staff from threats and attacks. Bolstered by initial success, other Parkview sites intend to expand to additional products enabled by Centrak’s portfolio of location-based safety devices in the near future.
 
Centrak’s location, security and sensing offering was enhanced with the purchase of Elpas Security in September 2018. The acquisition provided access to more than 25 technology patents and a team of industry veterans with more than 20 years of security technology experience.
 
In the past year, Centrak has expanded and enriched its emergency alert, staff duress and man-down capabilities. Today, its technologies help protect healthcare workers in more than 500 facilities across North America, Europe and Australia.