More RFID Journal Sites: RFID Journal Espanol RFID Journal Brasil RFID Journal Events RFID Journal Awards
Health Care NEWS
Text size:
T
T
T
Belgium Hospital Combines RFID, Sensors to Monitor Heart Patients
The RTLS is currently in pilot phase, largely to ensure that none of the alarms are missed, says Sijnave. If the pilot is successful, the University Hospital of Ghent expects to expand the RTLS capabilities, but Sijnave says it is still too early to say when or how expansion will occur.
The University Hospital of Ghent isn't the first health-care organization to deploy RFID and RTLS to track patients. But typically those that are tracking patients are doing so to manage patient flow. Saint Luke's East-Lee's Summit, located in Lee's Summit, Mo., and part of Saint Luke's Health System of 11 hospitals and many physician practices, tested an RF tracking system to determine whether the technology could improve the processes involved in admitting and treating patients at the hospital's emergency department (see Hospital Tries ZigBee to Track Patients).
What makes the University Hospital of Ghent's RF tracking system unique is that it is designed to respond to a medical event, Slobin says. "Hospitals are certainly looking for a wider variety of integration points with real-time locating systems. They want these systems to go beyond just getting locations. They want process enablers and ways to improve processes. That has been one of our main messages for the medical community," he says.
Though the University Hospital of Ghent is using the T2 tag, AeroScout has begun shipping a beta version of its next-generation model, the T3, to interested parties. The T3 is available in a new, smaller and flatter size, similar to a credit card, making it ideal for clipping onto badges or mounting onto equipment, Slobin says. The T3 has a longer battery life, providing more than four years' battery life. It also includes two call buttons and a tamper-proofing mechanism that triggers an immediate alert if the tag is removed or tampered with in any way.
The call buttons can be assigned different meanings; for example in an asset tracking application for monitoring hospital inventory, one call button could indicate the asset needs replenishing while the other could call for assistance. Optional features include an on-board temperature sensor. The new T3 tag will be generally available early in the second quarter.
more Health Care articles
The University Hospital of Ghent isn't the first health-care organization to deploy RFID and RTLS to track patients. But typically those that are tracking patients are doing so to manage patient flow. Saint Luke's East-Lee's Summit, located in Lee's Summit, Mo., and part of Saint Luke's Health System of 11 hospitals and many physician practices, tested an RF tracking system to determine whether the technology could improve the processes involved in admitting and treating patients at the hospital's emergency department (see Hospital Tries ZigBee to Track Patients).
What makes the University Hospital of Ghent's RF tracking system unique is that it is designed to respond to a medical event, Slobin says. "Hospitals are certainly looking for a wider variety of integration points with real-time locating systems. They want these systems to go beyond just getting locations. They want process enablers and ways to improve processes. That has been one of our main messages for the medical community," he says.
The call buttons can be assigned different meanings; for example in an asset tracking application for monitoring hospital inventory, one call button could indicate the asset needs replenishing while the other could call for assistance. Optional features include an on-board temperature sensor. The new T3 tag will be generally available early in the second quarter.
