Managing Assets

Asset tracking solutions make it simple for users to manage an organization’s valuable assets.

Costly, specialized medical equipment, such as surgical instruments, diagnostic devices, test equipment, and imaging machines, is often owned and maintained by a variety of departments within a healthcare facility. Effectively managing every valuable asset owned by a facility has become increasingly difficult. This is because healthcare facility administrators know that effective asset management facilitates compliance with regulatory bodies and accrediting institutions. Accordingly, the value of preventive maintenance tracking and equipment optimization should not be understated.

The concept of asset tracking is not a new practice within the healthcare industry. For years, facilities have performed basic tracking methods. Monitoring critical assets and the corresponding maintenance informs healthcare management of the equipment’s history, mitigates equipment risks, and better manages cost of equipment. From handwritten files to Excel documents, healthcare administrators often use manual asset tracking to record maintenance schedules. Moreover, while this method helps maintain records, the process is incredibly time intensive and creates unnecessary administrative burden. Employees spend a significant amount of time capturing and recording information, or searching through filing cabinets to locate appropriate reports. Manual asset tracking means increased human labor and increased human error.

In an effort to make asset tracking as efficient as possible, many healthcare facilities have adopted a more technological approach, often through use of barcode technology asset tracking solutions. These include barcode scanners, labelers, and software programs, all of which integrate seamlessly with the existing computer system.

After capturing asset equipment into one central database, users can begin maximizing asset life cycles by managing critical asset variables like maintenance history, utilization, and service record. Each time an asset is interacted with, barcodes capture that action. Since each item is scanned every time it is used, a historical report offers instant access to valuable operating intelligence data. Each user is fully aware of asset data and can therefore properly service the piece if needed. Doing so decreases the risk of using equipment that may fail, assists in equipment optimization, and supplements regulatory compliance.

Asset management also factors into a facilities’ accounting operation. Monitoring the maintenance history of an asset provides facility administrators insight into the last time an item received service, allowing administrators to determine whether assets should be replaced or serviced based on the amount of time since an asset has received maintenance and other financial outlays. If an administrator is aware of the other assets that require updates, as well as new asset procurements, the facility can better manage the money spent on new assets versus serviced items. Keeping track of the money spent on assets allows the facility to avoid wasting money on equipment that should be serviced rather than replaced, and helps the facility allot money for an item that needs to be replaced.

One facility that swapped its manual asset system for a barcode-based asset tracking system is Truxton Radiology Medical Group in Bakersfield, Calif. As a result of its implementation, the organization has reduced its equipment audit time from two or three days to a half-day procedure. Moreover, the facility virtually eliminated wasteful spending and decreased compliance reporting burden.

Healthcare providers, such as Truxton Radiology Medical Group, choose to implement asset-tracking technology into internal processes to reduce error, increase effective management practices, and confidently deliver healthcare services.

Integrating an asset management solution augments the efficiency of managing equipment maintenance, resulting in increased equipment optimization and a decrease in the cost of equipment repair. Thanks to Wasp MobileAsset, Truxton Radiology have found a single, economical source for a complete solution to healthcare asset management.

Wasp Barcode Technologies
Plano, Texas
www.waspbarcode.com