Christiana Care Discovers New Application for TeleVox’s HouseCalls™
Mobile, AL, May 18, 2006 - Automated messaging is amazingly versatile. HouseCalls, TeleVox Software’s automated messaging system, has been used for a wide variety of applications throughout the healthcare industry, ranging from account balance notifications to appointment reminders. Officials at Christiana Care Health System have discovered yet another unique use for the HouseCalls system.
Christiana Care’s Emergency Department uses HouseCalls to ensure sufficient staffing within its facilities. TeleVox houses a roster of nurses that can be immediately contacted when there is a shortage of nurses or an available shift. Prior to HouseCalls implementation, Christiana Care staff members spent multiple hours each day making these staffing request calls. Now, the process is started with a simple notification call from Christiana Care to TeleVox.
Christiana Care’s HouseCalls usage paves the way for similar applications among healthcare facilities across the country.
“One night during a severe overcrowding situation in the middle of flu season, we needed to call in extra staff. Our over-taxed ED charge nurse was so busy she didn’t have time to make the phone calls. I decided that what we needed was something akin to a reverse 911 system to make these calls in an automated fashion. That’s when we considered using TeleVox for this purpose” said Linda Laskowski Jones, RN, MS, Vice President for Emergency, Trauma & Aeromedical Services at Christiana Care Health System.
Christiana Care’s Emergency Department was not the first of the health system’s departments to utilize HouseCalls. Since November 2004, Christiana Care Cancer Center has used HouseCalls to deliver appointment reminders to patients. The success of appointment reminders led to emergency department implementation in February 2005.
HouseCalls messages use natural voices and can be personalized to include name, time, date, doctor name, location and other specific information. TeleVox has thousands of accessible phone lines, allowing the delivery of over 500,000 calls per day and nearly 100,000 per hour. This extensive capacity allows Christiana Care to complete any patient or staff communication within a minimal timeframe.
“It is always amazing to witness the versatility of HouseCalls in meeting specific client needs,” says Neil Armentrout, TeleVox President and CEO. “Innovative clients like Christiana Care play a tremendous role in the development and application of HouseCalls throughout the healthcare industry.”
About Christiana Care - Christiana Care Health System, which dates back to 1888, is one of the region’s largest not-for profit health care providers, serving the people of Delaware as well as neighboring Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. A teaching hospital, Christiana Care is recognized as a regional center for excellence in cardiology, cancer and women’s health services, as well as Level-I trauma care and Level-3 neonatal intensive care (both highest intensity). Christiana Care operates two hospitals, transitional care services, preventive medicine and rehabilitation services, a network of primary care physician offices and an extensive range of outpatient and home health services. Christiana Care provided $25.2 million of charity care last year.
About TeleVox - TeleVox Software, Inc., based in Mobile, AL, is a leading provider of communication solutions for the healthcare industry. With over 14 years of experience, TeleVox offers a full range of products, including outbound messaging and inbound IVR applications. Supported by a state-of-the-art infrastructure, TeleVox solutions resolve time-consuming communication issues associated with appointment reminders, patient notifications and patient inquiry. TeleVox has a worldwide presence in over 12,000 practices and organizations and delivers millions of messages weekly via telephone and the Internet.
Contact:
Chad Greer
TeleVox Software
800-644-4266
info@televox.com
Spiros Mantzavinos
Christiana Care Health System
302-327-3344
smantzavinos@christianacare.org