Author Archives: Jon Page

CSM Featured in Healthcare Facilities Today

Protecting patient privacy at your healthcare facility

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By Mark Hughes / Special to Healthcare Facilities Today
October 27, 2016

According to a recent report by ProPublica, the number of HIPAA complaints to healthcare providers and pharmacies are on the rise. However, this isn’t a new problem. The data suggests that patient privacy in healthcare facilities has always been an issue, and that complaints have risen mainly due to the government’s introduction of an online complaint portal that makes it easier for patients to file HIPAA complaints. As you know, HIPAA mandates how a healthcare provider is able to collect, store and use patients’ personal health information and requires providers to implement safeguards to protect patient privacy.

Many healthcare providers take measures to help protect patient privacy and comply with HIPAA, such as encrypting data and having employees take mandatory privacy training. This is great to protect privacy on servers or to ensure that patient data isn’t left unattended, but usually doesn’t do much to protect patient speech privacy. What’s speech privacy? Simply put, it’s the inability of an unintended listener to understand outside conversations. Someone with a lack of speech privacy is overhearing lots of conversations they shouldn’t be and is also concerned that their conversations are being overheard by others. See the full article on Healthcare Facilities Today

The Triple Play in Office Acoustics

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Offices are full of noise from conference calls, office chatter, improvised hallway meetings, printers, and keyboards just to name a few.  These office noises can be distracting and uncomfortable for your employees, clients, and anyone else in your office.  Learn how you can improve office acoustics and reduce office noise by actually adding more noise to it.  It may sound counter intuitive, but sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.

Paging

Remember getting called to the principal’s office or hearing the sports games scores? Paging has gone a long way since then.  Rather than sounding like a distant intergalactic overlord, paging systems are now clearer and less unnerving.  Consider investing in a paging system that won’t make you feel like you’re getting called to the principal’s office.

Background Music

When was the last time you watched a movie or TV show without music? Unless you have Morgan Freeman’s voice gracing your office airwaves, office noise can be distracting and unwelcoming.  I’m not suggesting you turn your office into a KISS rock concert with giant subwoofers and booming surround sound stereo, but soft background music can put people at ease. This is especially important if you have clients or potential clients visiting your office frequently.  As most sales people know, selling is more emotional than people care to admit. Set the mood right with some background music.

Sound Masking

Background music is pleasant and can lighten the mood, but it cannot cover conversations. Sound masking is soft random background noise that’s tuned to the same frequency of human speech. Because sound masking is tuned to the same frequency of human speech, it is soft on the ears since we’re used to the frequency of human speech.  A sound masking system immerses itself throughout your whole office so it becomes part of your environment. Small white noise machines are at a higher frequency, making a higher pitch noise, and the sound is coming from one spot, which can be distracting.

The benefit of sound masking is two-fold.  First, sound masking improves focus and productivity by covering distracting conversations going on around you.  Second, sound masking gives you and other coworkers speech privacy without having to invest in expensive sound proof walls or tiling, or complete re-construction of your office. If you want to focus in the office or have a private meeting, then you want sound masking in your office.

The Triple Play

Paging, music playback, and sound masking systems are typically separate audio solutions.  With duplicative wiring, devices, and power expenditures, you end up wasting time and money having these different acoustic solutions installed separately. Paging, music playback, and sound masking are now all available in one acoustic solution, the Qt Active Emitter. Save on time and money as well as productivity and privacy. If you’re curious, read more about the Qt Active Emitter.

Sound Masking for Open Offices

How to Lose a Client in 5 Ways: Tales of the Open Office

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably worked in an open office. Open offices are great for collaborating, attracting Generation Y talent, and saving money.  While there are pros to open offices, there are also cons.  There is a solution to these issues, which will be addressed at the end of this blog.

1. You had a crazy weekend…and clients know about it

So you had a great weekend. Super, but how does that help clients’ bottom line? Socializing with coworkers is common, but clients don’t need to hear everything you did this weekend.  I’m not saying don’t have fun, just don’t embarrass yourself or your coworkers.

2.  There’s a party…and your client isn’t invited

Open offices tend to come with a “work hard, play hard” culture.  However, not everyone plays and works at the same time. While I’m sure your client has indulged in an office birthday cake, they probably don’t want to hear a chaotic, off-tune “Happy Birthday” when they’re on a call with you.  Clients want to feel that you are working for them, not partying on their tab.

3. You’re the man/woman…and everyone in the office knows it

Sales, client services, and other client facing professionals tend to have outdoor-level “indoor” voices.  Not a knock on them; speaking clearly and enthusiastically is important for client calls, at least in Western culture business environments.  However, while you are dominating your call, you may be ruining the focus and productivity of others around you.

4. You have a million clients…and they can hear each other

Trust is key in any business relationship.  You work hard to create, maintain, and build trust. If a client can overhear other client conversations, that trust is gone.  Your client is thinking, “If I can hear them, can they hear me”?  Even if the conversation is harmless, your client wants to feel like they’re your only client. How much is a client worth to you? No clients mean no office birthday cakes, no happy hours, and probably no job.

5. You lost focus…like dropping a needle in a haystack of needles

Deadlines are tight and clients don’t care it’s a Friday at 5:00 p.m..  You have a report due 10 minutes ago, and your call is in 20 minutes. Mining through Excel data requires great attention to detail and focus, so if you lose your spot you’ll lose your mind.  It’s like losing a needle in a haystack of needles.  Clients count on you to cover the details. If you drop the ball, a client may drop you.

What if you could eat your cake and have it too?

This blog post is not meant to be a condemnation on fun, socialization or open offices for that matter. Just be aware that office noises could affect your client relationships. The reality is that office parties will continue, small talk will happen, and people will talk loudly on client calls. These are all good things, but not at the expense of a client.

But what if I told you there was a solution to reduce office noise so you could keep the fun collaborative culture of an open office, while maintaining professionalism with your clients? Would you like to eat your cake and have it too?

Let me tell you about sound masking. Sound masking is low level background noise that gently and precisely masks human speech, giving you speech privacy. Because it is at the frequency of human speech, it does not need to be loud and it is pleasant on the ears.  A sound masking system is placed throughout the office, so whether you are in the bullpen, a small conference room or the lunch room, you can work if others want to play.  Please watch the video below to learn about sound masking.

 

Cambridge Sound Management Customer Appreciation Event

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Splash into Summer With the Sound Masking Experts, Cambridge Sound Management

PoolComm 2016
Daylight Beach Club, Mandalay Bay Las Vegas
June 7, 2016
Register Now

Cambridge Sound Management welcomes customers and sound masking advocates to PoolComm 2016, a relaxing, social, and chilled out atmosphere event. There will be complimentary drinks and food that you can enjoy at the gorgeous Daylight Beach Club of Mandalay Bay Las Vegas.

Socialize with sound masking advocates and experts and check out our latest products.

 

All guests must be 21+ years of age with a valid form of government issued photo id.