Why asset management software will help your healthcare organization move forward

Care workers often spend a lot of time searching for resources. Such a search can even add up to half an hour! A waste of time, right? We agree. Healthcare organizations have a large number of resources, also called assets. Therefore it is not surprising that at a certain moment there is no overview anymore and resources get lost. But we think there is another way. How do you manage all your assets to save time and money? In this article you can read how to make asset management a success.

Why your healthcare organization wants to keep track of asset management

The goal of asset management is to optimally manage all assets that are of value to an organization. Did you know that the number of assets at hospitals can be as high as a thousand different assets? Think beds, medical devices and equipment. These large numbers make asset management even more difficult. And on top of that, all of these assets must be regularly maintained to ensure operation.

Because of these factors, assets quickly slip through the cracks and, in some cases, are never even recovered. Care workers spend a long time every day trying to find the right tools, which can cause frustration. Not to mention the malfunctions that occur when equipment is not properly maintained… Does your healthcare organization have asset management in place? Then you will enjoy the following benefits:

• You have insight into the condition of your assets;
• You know exactly what assets are present and where they are located;
• Employees can work more efficiently;
• You can easily plan the maintenance of assets;
• You reduce the chance of malfunctions;
• You prevent loss or theft of valuable equipment.

3 obstacles when getting started with asset management in healthcare

Although asset management is the ideal way to keep track of all the assets within your healthcare organization, not all organisations have it down to an art. Where does it go wrong? There are several stumbling blocks preventing asset management from getting off the ground. These include:

• Lack of support;
• No suitable system or software;
• No clear strategy.

Keeping track of assets is often seen as a difficult job that costs a lot of time and money. This is unfortunate, because asset management can save both time and money while, on the other hand, improving the quality of care. Without a good system or well thought-out strategy, asset management becomes a tough task. But how to set up asset management properly?

6 steps to make asset management a success

Afraid that asset management is a strenuous job that costs a lot of money? We like to make it easy for you! The Zenya Software Suite comes with a feature that makes asset management easier: the Zenya Card file. If you are already using Zenya, or are considering our software as a quality management solution, it comes with a tool to directly manage your asset management. Just how convenient is that!

You simply enter all the data of equipment or other objects into our software and link to the appropriate documents. You can also link to ERP software, for example. Thanks to the Card file Synchronization Tool, you then easily capture the data in the Zenya Card file. Once you’ve done this, keeping track of all assets is a lot easier! You’ll discover exactly how to do this using the following roadmap.

Stap 1. Create a map

Using a template, create a map for an object. This can be anything, such as (laboratory) equipment, machines, hospital beds, suppliers or customers, buildings or IT equipment. You can assign all kinds of attributes to it, such as a location, which makes management a lot easier.

Stap 2. Link relevant documentation to the file

This could be contracts, warranty terms, supplier information or a manual. You can manage these documents in Zenya DOC, the DMS. Does a manual consist of many pages and do you want to make it more user-friendly? An Interactive document uses smart questions to show only the information that is relevant at that moment. This way, a user does not have to go through a long document to know what a certain error message means.

Stap 3. Schedule regular maintenance

Regular maintenance lowers the number of problems and failures. And in some cases, a regular check or calibration is necessary. In the Zenya Card file, you can schedule this. Tasks are then automatically assigned to individuals or teams when a check needs to be carried out. When you create checklists and questionnaires in Zenya CHECK, you can link them directly to such a task. This makes implementation easier than ever.

Stap 4. Fix malfunctions as soon as possible

When there is a malfunction, anomaly or, for example, damage to an object, this is very inconvenient. It is important to have this resolved as quickly as possible so that work can continue as soon as possible. This is where incident management, with Zenya FLOW, comes in. By creating a report form and linking it to the object in the Card file, anyone can easily report what is wrong with the object.

This can also be easily done on mobile with the Zenya Capture App. This app makes creating a report even easier for the end user. For example, the object can already be determined based on the GPS location. Adding a photo with notes makes the report more complete. Because the notification is automatically linked to the object, the person who has to follow up on the notification does not have to search for exactly what it entails. It can simply be found in the system.

Stap 5. Place a QR code or NFC beacon

You make it even easier for users to look up documents or make a report when they can use the Search App or Capture App to scan a code or use NFC to retrieve the data directly. This greatly lowers the threshold for searching for information or creating a report, which truly improves efficiency, quality and safety. Such a code can be easily generated with asset management software.

Stap 6. Link objects

Objects are not just physical things. For example, a contract or supplier can also be an object, and thus a map. That makes linking maps very useful: for example, you can link warranty and contract terms to a supplier, which then apply to all or some of that supplier’s objects. When these conditions change, you only need to change them for that object. All linked cards to which those conditions apply will then automatically receive the change.

Make asset management a success within your healthcare organization with Zenya

Wondering what asset management software can do for your healthcare organization? There are countless examples of what you can use our software for. For example:

• The registration of beds and equipment in a hospital or nursing home. This way you know exactly what assets are present and where they are located;
• Managing laboratory equipment. This equipment should be calibrated and checked regularly and you should be able to report deviations immediately;
• Maintaining equipment and machinery by a technical department. Tasks are automatically scheduled so they never miss a check;
• Keeping track of IT equipment such as printers, monitors or laptops. For example, keep track of warranty periods, report malfunctions and schedule updates.

So you can see that asset management software can mean a big improvement in efficiency and quality. And if you don’t need special, expensive asset management software but can use one smart tool, everyone can do asset management.