In the modern healthcare industry, including hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabilitation centers, accurate record keeping is vital and accurate time tracking is an absolute necessity, for legal liability as well as for a variety of medical reasons. Keeping track of precise time to properly administer medications, perform surgery and assure that medical personnel are where they are supposed to be at the proper time is extremely important. Some malpractice issues may be averted by accurate time stamps on patient charts.

Technological advances are available that make accurate time information easy to access and record, making synchronized time throughout the institution a reality while reducing maintenance costs. This same technology can eliminate the need to reset clocks after a power outage, or for daylight savings time.

One wide spread technology that can be used to manage time keeping is Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Originally used as a military navigation tool, GPS has grown into a widely used technical instrument that is featured for applications including navigation and tracking as well as time keeping.

GPS works by receiving data from earth orbiting satellites and triangulating position through three dimensional space. Based on the amount of time it takes the satellites to receive signals from each other and send the data to the GPS receiver, the distance is accurately determined, and position is calculated. Not only do GPS satellites transmit locations but the GPS receiver can use their locations to deduce extremely accurate time information. Once the receiver pinpoints its exact coordinates, it can use that data to calculate the time, taking into consideration the time zone and hemispheric location. This form of time telling is accurate anywhere in the world.

GPS synchronization is an excellent solution for tracking time especially for healthcare institutions that rely on accurate time for day to day and critical operations. Clock systems are readily available that can synchronize every clock installed within a building. With every clock up-to-date and running properly, daily activities can run smoothly without the challenge of clocks that may run too fast or too slow.

No matter what system your healthcare institution implements, be sure that all of the clocks run on synchronized time to avoid time related mistakes. When an establishment relies on accurately documenting surgery durations, dispensing medications and making appointments on time with patients, up-to-date clock systems are vital to ensure minimized legal exposure and the efficient operation of health services.