As the healthcare system grows, securing these facilities becomes ever more challenging. Increasingly, medical providers have multiple facilities within their networks, making traditional keying systems and credentialing impractical.
Expensive wired access control for select high-security doors combined with old-fashioned keyed locks was a step in the evolution of facility security, but this provided very little visibility into who used those doors. Replacing traditional keyed doors with wireless access was the natural outgrowth of this inefficient, hybrid solution.
Kyle Pfeiffer, Industry Solutions Leader—Healthcare of SALTO Systems, notes, “Security remains at the forefront of decision-making in healthcare, driving technology for access control to evolve. By integrating keyless entry into an existing infrastructure, healthcare professionals are better equipped to control the flow of people entering or exiting the premises without impairing efficient movement.”
Physical Keys: Impractical and Expensive
While high-security areas may require wired electronic systems, there still exists the problem of physical locks and keys on all the other doors. Pfeiffer says, “Most offices within medical facilities are still using mechanical keys, which is not an effective way to secure or protect information in those areas.”
Moreover, managing physical keys is costly. He cites the example of doctors checking into a working suite at the hospital for an extended time period. “They hardly ever return the suite’s physical keys when checking out. Those locks then need to be replaced for security purposes,” he says, which is an expensive undertaking. “Doors that use physical keys and locks can cost facilities up to six figures each year just to manage and replace them.”
However, the smart technology used with wireless access allows for a quick and easy credential change made by a security administrator when the physician leaves, without requiring that the lock itself be switched out.
Pfeiffer notes that installing wire-free locks like those in SALTO’s Virtual Network (SVN) is an easy and cost-efficient alternative to mechanical keying systems. “They don’t require running wires and are easy and inexpensive to install. Replacing mechanical locks with SVN technology is an investment that pays for itself in less than a year and provides significant savings every year thereafter.”
The Benefits of Wireless Access Control
A major benefit of keyless access control is that all doors are managed on a single system, without the problems of handling different types of locks and multiple credentials. This allows for efficient management of foot traffic and identification of unwanted visitors.
Staff members also benefit. Medical professionals have access to different areas, floors, buildings and offices without fumbling around with multiple physical keys or managing different credentials. Being able to add more keyless entry points also makes matters easier for security and IT staff, while providing them with increased visibility into access data. They also have the ability to quickly manage an urgent situation or change staff credentials.
Finally, a keyless access system like SVN allows for the growth of medical systems. As large healthcare complexes add clinics, buildings and locations, wireless access control manages both interior and exterior doors on a single system, saving money while increasing security and convenience.
The Future of Wireless Access Control
Pfeiffer observes, “Within any healthcare facility, leadership has the responsibility to regulate areas where patient records are kept. Keyless systems improve security, thereby ensuring compliance and patient privacy.”
Maintaining these high standards in order to meet regulatory standards like HIPAA will continue to drive the technology of wireless access control. Its future in healthcare security not only brings with it the benefits of meeting patient privacy needs, but also provides significant cost control and scalability for future growth.
Related Stories
Healthcare Facilities | Apr 13, 2017
Investors and developers are still avid for medical office buildings
A new CBRE survey finds that equity set aside for purchases continues to outshoot the availability of in-demand supply.
Healthcare Facilities | Apr 13, 2017
The rise of human performance facilities
A new medical facility in Chicago focuses on sustaining its customers’ human performance.
Healthcare Facilities | Apr 11, 2017
Today’s community centers offer glimpses of the healthy living centers of tomorrow
Creating healthier populations through local community health centers.
Healthcare Facilities | Apr 2, 2017
Comfort and durability were central to the design and expansion of a homeless clinic in Houston
For this adaptive reuse of an old union hall, the Building Team made the best of tight quarters.
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 31, 2017
The cost of activating a new facility
Understanding the costs specifically related to activation is one of the keys to successfully occupying the new space you’ve worked so hard to create.
Sponsored | Healthcare Facilities | Mar 29, 2017
Using Better Light for Better Healthcare
Proper lighting can improve staff productivity, patient healing, and the use of space in healthcare facilities
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 29, 2017
Obamacare to Republicare: Making sense of the chaos in healthcare
With a long road of political and financial uncertainty ahead for the healthcare sector, what does this mean for the nonresidential construction industry’s third-largest sector?
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 24, 2017
5 insights for designing a human-centered pediatric experience
Pediatric experience design must evolve beyond the common mantra of “make it fun” or “make it look kid-friendly.”
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 3, 2017
CBRE: Developing a total project budget for a healthcare capital project
Successfully developing a complete and well thought out Total Project Budget is perhaps the most important task you’ll perform in the initial phase of your project.
Healthcare Facilities | Feb 26, 2017
A Georgia Tech white paper examines the pros and cons of different delivery systems for ICUs
It concludes that a ceiling-mounted beam system is best suited to provide critical care settings with easier access to patients, gases, and equipment.