On average every year hospitalized patients in the US experience almost 3 million preventable adverse events such as adverse drug reactions, falls, pressure ulcers and ventilator-associated pneumonia. The total cost to the US health system of treating these adverse events is in excess of $29 billion. Due to the regulatory shift towards quality and accountability, these are costs that hospitals must absorb. Hospital barriers to communication and poor patient-provider communication put individuals at increased risk of experiencing preventable adverse medical outcomes and unnecessary additional staff and patient stress.
To address the communication needs of the widest range of patients, Voxello continues to develop technology to support patients who face both physical and cognitive barriers to effective communication. Individuals who have limited physical abilities are often unable to effectively summon help and communicate with caregivers. How do you communicate a potential adverse reaction to a medication if you cannot speak or move? Voxello addresses these communication barriers and by doing so hospitals can potentially save capital dollars by reducing their adverse event rates. Effective patient-provider communication reduces both patient and staff stress and can significantly move the needle on patient satisfaction. Improving patient-provider communication is at the core of the Voxello mission.
See our recently published analysis of the cost of communication barriers (Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, SIG 12, Vol. 3(Part 3), 2018).
