Why Actall? We Make RTLS Work Where It’s Not Supposed To
By Don Millick
Posted April 20, 2022
Complex physical environments—corrections, healthcare and behavioral health facilities—have specific characteristics that can make tracking and security difficult. Whether it’s dense walls or multiple floors, certain features found in these buildings can result in delayed duress alarms, confused signals and issues with accuracy.
Actall has an answer for those problems with our RTLS positioning solution, and we thrive in complex physical environments. In fact, it’s not rare that we’re called in to replace competitor RTLS systems that couldn’t measure up to the varied and specific needs of these types of environments.
Reliability in signal propagation is essential in a dynamic space—especially in healthcare settings, which require particularly high performance for patient care, efficiency and tracking expensive machinery.
Granularity is Required in the Healthcare System
With multiple stories, multiple wings and multiple functions, healthcare facilities are complex. Surgical areas, emergency rooms and patient rooms all have different levels of patient need, lengths of patient stay, mobility requirements and indoor positioning needs.
Actall provides accuracy in tracking people and equipment down to the room—and even within a room, too. We’ve worked with healthcare facilities to not only track expensive equipment and patients, but also to encourage certain behaviors, like handwashing.
In one recent project, a healthcare facility requested we help them differentiate between two different sides of a nursing station in the same room to track hand-washing behaviors. We were able to tune our equipment to fit their needs precisely and give hospital administrators crucial insight into hand-washing frequency and protocol adherence. RTLS that is specific to the room is one thing—but our technology is so precise and customizable that we’re able to give tracking insight into two (or more) areas within the same room. That’s unique in the industry, and we’re proud to offer it to our clients.
When Lives Hang in the Balance, the RTLS Better Work
Clients often come to us with check-ins and glowing reports of our RTLS’s functionality. It’s rarer that we get to see the technology work first-hand, though.
I’ll give you an example: At a recent installation at a corrections facility hospital, I was in the control room walking a client through some of the system’s functionalities. Suddenly, on the video monitors, we witnessed a staff member get attacked by a patient who was clearly experiencing a mental health crisis. The staff member immediately pressed their Actall duress button, which sent out an alarm immediately for backup.
Within a few seconds, other staff members and security officers arrived to defuse the situation. The staff member avoided the potential of additional harm. In high-intensity situations, especially when patients or staff members could find themselves in danger, speed and accuracy are key. That’s why we promise our duress systems will send out alarms within three seconds. We’re proud to help our clients carry out their important work, knowing Actall has their back.