Kontakt.io, the leader in AI-powered real-time-location systems (RTLS) for healthcare operations, announced a major expansion of its Staff Safe workplace violence prevention solution to include full outdoor coverage. With this advancement, hospitals can now provide comprehensive staff protection beyond the indoors and throughout their campuses — including parking lots, garages, drop-off zones, and walking paths — using a single, integrated RTLS platform.
This product enhancement comes as healthcare systems face unprecedented levels of workplace violence. According to the American Hospital Association, violent incidents in healthcare settings have surged by 112 percent, costing hospitals $18.27 billion in 2023 alone. For an average 1,000-bed facility, that equates to $19 million in annual losses tied to staffing disruptions, legal costs, and turnover.
“Most staff safety systems stop at the hospital doors. We went further, adding a one-mile-radius outdoor coverage zone: a seamless Blue-Zone safety net that stretches from the nurse’s station to the farthest open air parking stall,” said Rom Eizenberg, Chief Revenue Officer at Kontakt.io. “We took our solution that currently guards tens of thousands of caregivers in leading health systems and stretched it across the entire campus.”
Eizenberg explained: “This innovative solution requires zero wiring with an easy five-minute setup per install point – access points are battery-powered, weather-proof, and maintenance-free – all of which delivers unmatched economics at scale. You may use existing access points or set up new ones. All data, insights, and alerts are viewed on a single pane of glass, monitoring and protecting nurses before and after their shifts, on their way to and from the unit. It’s comprehensive coverage throughout the Blue-Zone that is fast and easy to install at a price that finally makes sense.”
Also Read: Dayforce Research: Taming Friction Key to Simplifying Workplace Complexity
How It Works: Real-Time Safety at the Press of a Button
Staff Safe equips nurses, aides, and other team members with Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) Smart Badges featuring discreet panic buttons. With a single press, staff can summon help — triggering an instant duress alert that shares the staff member’s real-time location and dispatches responders, whether indoors or outdoors.
The outdoor extension includes:
- LoRaWAN-based Outdoor Gateways for long-range, campus-wide connectivity
- BLE-enabled Smart Badges with new usability upgrades
- Indoor Base Stations for seamless and precise location triangulation
- Cloud-native platform for analytics, reporting, and infrastructure management
Next-Gen Hardware: Smart Badge 3 MiniÂ
Kontakt.io also announced the release of the Smart Badge 3 Mini, a purpose-built wearable for clinical environments. The smaller badge joins the original Smart Badge in the company’s IoT portfolio. Key improvements include:
- Lighter, smaller form factor for 24/7 wearability and comfort
- Larger recessed panic button to reduce false activations
- Haptic feedback to confirm alert transmission for badge wearer
- Four-year battery life, minimizing operational overhead
“Staff safety isn’t an option — it’s a foundational commitment,” said Mary Beth Kingston, PhD, RN, FAAN, former Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer at Advocate Health and current member of Kontakt.io’s Healthcare Advisory Board. “Healthcare leaders must treat staff safety as an organizational priority, not an isolated feature of healthcare operations. Kontakt.io’s Staff Safe solution not only empowers nurses and clinicians with instant, location-aware support but also sends a clear message that their well-being is a priority — indoors and out.”
One Platform Handles Every Use Case
Kontakt.io’s AI-powered RTLS platform does more than address staff duress. It serves as a unified infrastructure built to drive transformation across the hospital — enabling asset tracking and “right-sizing”, patient throughput optimization, regulatory compliance, and more. By consolidating point solutions into a single orchestration layer, hospitals simplify operations, reduce total cost of ownership, shrink vendor sprawl, and unlock faster, smarter decision-making across departments.
Currently, Kontakt.io partners with Northeast Georgia Health System, the Veterans Health Administration, and Genesis HealthCare System, among others.
Source: PRNewswire
