Attention Turns to the Caregiver Experience

By Dr. Thomas Schwieterman

June 4, 2019

As a caregiver, you know physical, emotional and mental exhaustion is common in your profession. You may often go home with back pain, an aching neck and sore muscles and joints. You also may be concerned about safety, especially with assisting patients with mobility issues, straining to reach supplies or risking possible infection from contagions. With that, along with working long hours due to disorganization and not knowing when and where patients are ready to see you, it’s no surprise that caregiver burnout is a growing problem.

Healthcare professionals should expect a better experience. You should be able to spend your days focused on the health and well-being of others without sacrificing your own.

With that in mind, we identified a set of caregiver rights to help create a safer, more comfortable and more efficient point of care environment.

 We at Midmark believe all caregivers should be guaranteed the following:

  1. An ergonomically designed clinical environment that increases productivity and comfort for the entire care team.

     

  2. An exam room configuration that supports a patient-centered approach and allows for properly performed exams and procedures.

     

  3. A well-stocked standardized point of care where supplies and equipment are easily accessible for better patient care.

     

  4. Equipment that promotes accessibility and supports proper working positions to enhance interactions with the patient (e.g., adjustable exam chair).

     

  5. A safe clinical environment that helps eliminate liability issues and protects the care team and patients from undue stress and risk.

     

  6. Intuitive technology that seamlessly integrates into the point of care without negatively impacting the patient-caregiver interaction.

     

  7. Diagnostic devices and tools that transfer patient information to the EMR to eliminate data entry errors and streamline processes.

     

  8. Furniture and equipment that are easy to clean and help protect the care team and patients from infections.

     

  9. Accurate data at the point of care so clinical decisions can be made on the spot, rather than requiring follow-up appointments.

     

  10. Workflows and processes that increase efficiencies, fostering a patient-caregiver interaction that reflects why caregivers entered the healthcare field.