Overview

 

Where do you want to go today?®


Most will recognize this as the Microsoft corporation's catchphrase. However the question most business managers and healthcare directors are faced with is not where do you want to go, but rather how are you going to get there? To acheive the goals you have set out for yourself, your employees must be able to effectively communicate both with you and amongst themselves. A recent study by New York-based Jack Morton Worldwide, a global experimental marketing agency, shows that only 33% of employees are would rate there current communication structure as "adequate". Other studies have shown that up to 70% of employees rate their current communication structure as their top reason for job dissatisfaction.

Consider the benefits of improving your workplace communication:


Mednode can help take you and your employees to where you want be.
Built around the most powerful forum software in the industry (vBulletin), mednode is a web-based applications and support system designed specifically to assist healthcare directors improve the flow of information to employees within their department. Take a moment to browse through all we can do for your organization using the links to the left.

 

 

The mednode service application offers you and your employees numerous benefits:


Provide a centralized communication area for all staff

Most organizations idea of communication consists of notes taped to a wall, door, bulletin board, or is in the form mass e-mails that can easily be dismissed or overlooked. The Mednode application provides a central location, accessible to all your employees, where messages, memos and announcements are permanently stored on your site.

Allow for feedback from employees on issues

Communication is a two way process. The downward flow of information (from management to staff) is often easier to disseminate than the upward flow (staff to management). Mednode allows your employees to post feedback, suggestions, and ideas to a centralized location for you to view. You may even setup specific topic areas and/or polls to glean information on what your employees need from you, and conversely, what you need from them.

Faster, more accessible  file sharing

Need to share important files with your employees? Easily create a file sharing area within your application. Simply upload the file(s) you want to distribute and your employees will have direct access to them from anywhere, at any time. You decide how long they stay there and who has access to view them.

Boost employee morale

In addition to the obvious improvement in the flow of information, Mednode permits you to setup sections that are specifically unrelated to the workplace. Employees may discuss any number of topics, post outside events they are hosting, or simply share stories and pictures of family with each other.

Reduced record keeping

Since all information is stored permanently on your site, there is no need to maintain a separate log of memos that have been sent. Any posted memo can be accessed at any time regardless of when it was posted. Your departments Policy and Procedures as well as Clinical Pathways and monitoring protocols may be uploaded, eliminating the need for multiple documents.

Faster flow of information

Department meetings are great, but what about the employees who were off the day of the meeting, or those who had to cover for others who were attending? If you choose, your employees may be given access to Mednode from any location. They may log in from a workstation at your company, from home, a web enabled cell phone, or PDA. You can be assured that all issues you need to have addressed will be seen by those who need to.

 

 

 

Program features included with all versions of mednode

Access to director’s forum:

An invaluable resource for directors, the purchase of the Mednode program gives you access to a forum specifically designed for, and solely used by, department directors. Use this to discuss common issues you face with other leaders in your position from around the country.

Dynamic calendar:

Integrated calendar with reminder function for events

Automated announcement posting:

You have the option of displaying events on your calendar in an easy to identify section listing all upcoming events for the next XX number of days. Each event is clickable so that employees may click the event summary to view further information.

Unlimited user sections:

An unlimited number of sections may be setup for any topic of  your choosing. Each of these sections may be further subdivided into sub-sections. The possibilities are endless.

Controlled Access Areas:

With Mednode you have full control over who may view what information. Each employee is assigned into a usergroup, these usergroups are only allowed to view what you choose to let them view. If you would like for an employee of certain group to have limited access to a controlled area, you may do this as well. Again, the possibilities are limitless.

Full search functionality:

Search by date, section, user or any combination thereof. The information you need is always accessible and easily found.

Complete control over outside guests viewing your information:

If desired, no one outside of your department can view any information contained within your Mednode site. Additionally, you may chose to allow guest to only view certain topics or pages.

Access from home, work, PDA, or web enabled cell phone:

Authorized users may access Mednode from anywhere they have an internet connection.

Total control over the look/layout and design of your Mednode site:

Simply put, your site may take whatever appearance you desire. From simply  changing colors, to custom graphics and interfaces, the choice is yours.

Automated system backups:

Full daily system backup is include. You never need to worry about lost data.

 

 

 

Available options are listed below.*

Secure Real time chat function with enabled file sharing

Discuss issues with employees from home, on the road or anywhere via a fully integrated, secure chat client which also gives you the ability to share files between employees in real-time.

Integrated e-mail (employee@yoursitename.com)

Give all employees a centralized e-mail address accessible from anywhere

Online testing

You have the option to expand the program to include on-line department testing. Tests can be in most any format and can be automatically graded with scores easily accessible and archived for as long as you need them

256bit Encryption

Provide an extra measure of security for your site by choosing a secured server. All information contained within the site is protected using the most up to date encryption methods. For healthcare related departments, this means all content on your site will exceed current HIPPA guidelines for the protection of sensitive data.

Connectivity to other Mednode health boards

Allow employees to connect with other, related Mednode boards to share ideas

Unique homepage for visitors describing your organization

Add a unique homepage for your department or business viewable by anyone. Use this to highlight what services you provide or for any purpose you like.

Boost employee morale by allowing custom homepages for your staff.

What better way to foster employee morale and help your employees build relationships than offering them their own homepages to highlight their interests. As with other features of Mednode, all content is directly controlled by you, allowing complete control of what is contained within an employees personal page.  

Real-time RSS newsfeeds delivered to your site

Get targeted, up to the minute news delivered directly to your site with an RSS newsfeed.

Picture and Video Gallery

Include a picture and video gallery for your employees to post family photos in or use it to distribute training videos.

*additional charges apply

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Contract All | Expand All

How secure is mednode?

While no one can guarantee that any site is 100% secure, we have gone to great lengths to ensure the integrity of your mednode site both through our server and within the applications we use.
 
 All passwords use multiple md5 hashes and hash that up with a unique salt. What this means is that it is next to impossible to decrypt user passwords.

There is a built in strike system within the forum software we use. A user attempting access has five attempts to correctly enter a username and password, after which they are denied access for a specified amount of time.

Our severs, and the software we use, support .htaccess password protection meaning that if desired, you may incorporate a separate password to gain access to your directory before any application software even loads.

You have full and total control of who sees what information. We can even set your site up to disallow robot spidering, thereby greatly reducing the chance your site will even show up as listed on the major search engines.

Should you need even more security, enterprise level 256bit encryption is available as separate option

Is this something I can do myself?

Most anyone with intermediate html, php, and java scripting knowledge can implement the basic functions provided, making them work together seamlessly requires a significant amount of time, experience, and ongoing maintenance. A portal site like the one shown in the examples page takes, on average, 50-100hrs to fully implement and secure.

Someone setting up even the most basic of sites like this need only enter one wrong line of code to make the entire application stop functioning. Data integrity is a priority and we provide a complete backup and reinstallation service to you for the life of your contract.

How long does it take to complete my program once I purchase?

Each company varies depending on the number of users and options included, but the typical time to complete your site averages 3-4wks. Once we have your applications setup, we will call and give you your administrative password. At this point, you may test the functions and become familiar with the software, after which you may submit any questions or changes you might want implemented

What kind of support can I expect?

We provide unlimited, free, phone and email support for the life of your contract. Should you have any questions on how to do something or if some aspect of Mednode is not working as you think it should be, simply let us know and we will do everything we can to make sure your program works for you and your employees.

Can I add options later?

Absolutely, although there are incentives on the options if you purchase them with the initial program. 

Why is there a maintenance fee and what does it cover?

This fee covers your yearly domain name registration (www.yourchosenname.com), your monthly server fees, bandwidth, hosting, site backup, maintenance, technical support and free product upgrades. The fee is set as low as possible, while still allowing us to cover the costs for providing an ongoing service. 

Do you provide on-site setup and training?

Generally we do not, although exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis. The entire application is able to be remotely accessed by us should any problem arise. You will be given access to our support site as well as a comprehensive training manual on how to use the software. Of course, you can always call or email us to address any problem you may have.

Can I setup mednode on our company intranet/server?

Due to the large variety of operating systems, user protocols, access restrictions and security entanglements on company servers, mednode is only available through a separate server provided by us. Operating this way ensures we have access to the system at any time should you need help and also allows you, and your employees, full use of the system from any location outside your company intranet. The only requirement of your IT department (if applicable) will be to allow access to the mednode server if you are using web filtering software.

What about pricing?

We have listed the price for the basic packages and options which should be fairly close to what your actual cost is. However, since each company and department is different and mednode is custom tailored to you and your needs, prices will vary depending on these factors. Therefore, while you may have 50 employees and want just the chat option, others may have 500+ employees and need all the available options. The configurations are limitless and as such, there is no way to provide you with an exact price until we have discussed with you what your needs are.

Where does the name mednode come from?

mednode began by serving the healthcare industry and we derived our name as a result of that collaboration: "med" (ication) "node" (a unit used to build a data structure). Our main focus resides in all areas of business communication, from small, privately owned businesses to large, corporate clients.

 

 

Don’t see your question listed here? Please contact us and we will gladly talk with you about any issues you don’t see addressed here.

 

 

 

 

©  2006-2007, mednode.com

inquiry@mednode.com