New Safety Technology for Healthcare Staff

At Beebe Healthcare in Delaware, the use of wearable safety buttons by frontline workers is being initiated in an attempt to enhance overall safety in the workplace. This healthcare system has joined hands with the healthcare safety technology firm Canopy and launched Canopy Protect platform.

In the first phase of this project, 1,500 frontline workers will be covered. The wearable buttons enable the worker to notify nearby people in case he/she requires any assistance.

The launch started on July 28 in the Emergency Department at the Lewes Campus of Beebe. Dr. David Tam, who is the President and CEO of Beebe, and Kathy Tregear, Beebe’s Chief Nursing Officer, have distributed the buttons to nurses, clinicians and other workers.

Rollout Will Expand Across Beebe Campuses

Beebe will roll out the safety-button program at other locations by the end of the fall. The program will be rolled out in the remaining parts of the Lewes campus, other locations on the Abessinio Health campus, such as the Specialty Surgical Hospital and Tunnell Cancer Center, and finally the South Coastal Health Campus located in Millville.

The health care facility stated that the distribution of the button will be based on their workplace incidents. Employees who work in areas with a higher history of workplace violence will be offered the buttons first.

As Dr. Tam put it, all employees working for Beebe should feel safe when they treat the patients and the community.

Part of a Wider Focus on Healthcare Worker Safety

This move comes on the heels of Delaware’s increased focus on the protection of healthcare workers, which include passing legislation in 2022 declaring an assault on specific healthcare workers a second-degree felony.

Additionally, healthcare workers in Delaware have been accorded other protections in 2023, which permit them to briefly detain someone posing a danger to them or to others until law enforcement arrives.

“Canopy” founder and CEO, Shan Sinha, noted that the technology had been designed to provide frontline workers with a quick method of requesting help in case of any threat to their safety.

Beebe Will Track the Program’s Results

Beebe will keep an eye on this new program as more employees start utilizing the device. Measures that will be tracked include how fast the alerts are responded to and also workers’ compensation claims resulting from physical violence at work.

This new venture is part of steps taken by Beebe Healthcare to provide its employees with useful tools for responding to safety issues.