Updating your hospital shelving is not an easy task. You may feel overwhelmed at the number of options available with different benefits and features, especially when you’re not sure what exactly you need. Choosing the wrong healthcare storage and compromise your facility’s efficiency, primarily if you have a hard time looking for what you need. As a result, you’ll experience decreased worker productivity, increased operating costs, and jeopardised security.
Fortunately, there are ways to help you find the best medical shelving available. By asking yourself these six questions, you’ll find the storage solution that perfectly fits your current and future needs.
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What Are We Storing?
When you upgrade your hospital shelving, you’ll need to do an inventory of the items that you’re currently housing. You may find that you’re storing obsolete or unnecessary items, which can make space for the more important ones. You may also realise that you’re keeping more of a specific item and tailor your shelving solutions to that. Having an audit on your inventory and the media you’ll be holding now and in the future will help you figure out a system that fits your situation now and for the years to come.
There are also specialised storage systems available, like our hospital shelving, which can accommodate various needs. They’re flexible enough to cater to any changes you need to make to your storage.
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How Much Do We Expect to Store?
Updating your shelving system must address not only your current needs but your future ones as well. You may even be looking for new storage now to adjust to unexpected growth in your facility! However, planning for change will affect the free space you have, which will then require new filing processes and a new system organisation. Ensure that you factor in potential growth before buying a storage system.
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How Much Space Do We Have?
Determining how much space you have is crucial when deciding on the type of system that best fits your present and future needs. If you’re working with limited space while expecting substantial growth, then you’ll want to invest in a high-density mobile shelving system.
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What Are Our Requirements for Workflow and Accessibility?
Your workers interact with your files and inventory every day, and the way they do so is crucial to the system you need. If they use these items frequently and simultaneously, your storage system must be easy to access with uncomplicated mechanisms. Any kinks in the process will hamper their efficiency and productivity, so ensure that your storage solution improves the function rather than obstructs it.
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What Are Our Compliance Requirements?
Another factor to consider is the compliance of your new shelving system. It is also subject to building codes and weight load restrictions, so ensure that it follows these regulations. It must also be accessible to any employees with physical disabilities.
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What Are Our Security Requirements?
An important consideration to make in your new shelving system is its security features. If you have records that contain valuable or sensitive information, you’ll have to ensure that these are stored with the proper security protocols. You must also take into account the number of individuals with limited access and others with full access. The different workflows and user scenarios closely intertwine with your storage solutions, so account for these when deciding on your new healthcare storage.
Conclusion
Upgrading your hospital shelving may be a challenging task, but asking yourself these six questions will help you decide on the ideal solution for your facility. Your storage must accommodate your current needs and the potential for future growth. Otherwise, you may end up with an inefficient or dangerous system, compromising your facility. Take stock of your inventory, processes, and workflow scenarios to find the perfect healthcare storage for you.
PP Healthcare Solutions LTD is a proud supplier of high-quality medical storage, hospital shelving, and a fully comprehensive range of HTM71 storage for improved ward and departmental stock management. We are committed to providing only the best storage solutions for our clients. Get in touch with us today to see how we can help!