French elderly care provider again turns to Ascom to help improve residents’ comfort and safety

L’Association du Sacré Cœur—an elderly care organization that operates two residential care facilities, a drop-in center, and other services in the Niort and Cherveux areas of western France—has again chosen Ascom wireless communication solutions as part of an ongoing modernization program.

"It’s of course wonderful to help an organization such as L’Association du Sacré Cœur provide even better care,” says Philippe Billet, Managing Director of Ascom France. ”But the order also illustrates how Ascom cooperates with care providers over time to constantly improve care quality, residents’ safety and staff satisfaction.”

L’Association du Sacré Cœur ordered its first Ascom solutions in 1992, with the installation of an Ascom nurse call system. The organization again chose Ascom when it decided in 1995 to install a Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) solution. The latest order is part of a major extension and renovation program that began in 2010, and involves the installation of a wanderer monitoring solution, and an upgrade in staff members’ mobile handsets.

"This solution,” adds Billet, "combines 30 Ascom teleCARE IP wireless transceivers with carefully located radio base stations. The transceivers are worn by residents who are at risk of becoming disoriented or lost, and come as either tastefully designed and ergonomic wristbands or pendants. The system transmits very precise location data to caregivers’ handsets, helping staff respond quickly and efficiently should a resident appear to be wandering outside pre-determined boundaries within the 11,000m² of the two residential care facilities.”

The latest order from L’Association du Sacré Cœur also includes updates to Ascom middleware, the software that joins the various components of a wireless communication solution into a seamless whole. Ascom middleware also provides L’Association du Sacré Cœur with event traceability, device management tools and response time statistics.

Commenting on this latest phase of Ascom’s cooperation with L’Association du Sacré Cœur, the organization’s Managing Director, Jean Pierre Bacle, says: "Ascom’s communications solutions have been really beneficial to our residents. Deploying a DECT-based system, for example, made it possible for residents to communicate directly with staff members. We’ve also seen real, measurable improvements in our care teams’ response times. And by installing the Ascom wanderer monitor and control system, we’ve definitely enhanced safety and quality of life for residents—giving them the freedom they need to move and socialize, while minimizing risk.”

Ascom and L’Association du Sacré Cœur are currently working on developing a combined WiFi- and GSM-based solution. "Such a solution,” says Billet, "can have a major and positive impact on how care is provided. For instance, making it possible for staff to receive clinical data and alerts will make it possible for some residents to remain longer in assisted living accommodation. Anything that enables a person to remain in his or her own home and to live with dignity, comfort and safety is to be welcomed. Our pending Ascom solution will help us achieve this valuable goal.”

About Ascom Wireless Solutions

Founded in 1955, Ascom Wireless Solutions, a division of Ascom AG, provides mission critical ICT for global healthcare. Today, more than 100,000 of our systems are installed in hospitals, senior care and independent living facilities and any business areas where mission critical communication is vital. Above all, we are dedicated to making a difference in healthcare.

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