HIMSS 2011 RFID and RTLS Pavilion

Over the last decade, the increasing complexity of medical devices and clinical information systems has driven the need for increased device interconnectivity, integration with IS platforms, and enhanced communications. These integrations enable data to be shared and rapidly delivered to the point-of-care and additionally archived in patient electronic medical record (EMR) flow sheets. This complex interconnectivity has clearly identified the need for accurate, patient
centric, identification and association driving the need to integrate bar-coding, RFID and Realtime Location System (RTLS) technologies into the patient care environment to support these functions. Device connectivity integrated with RFID & RTLS systems is used to establish the dynamic relationships between patients, care providers and devices connected to the patient.This enables rapid filtering, processing and delivery of critical information directly to computer
stations and to the variety of hand-held devices carried by the care provider at the point-of-care. This delivery methodology enhances patient care and safety, enabling rapid response to critical
issues. For example:

  • Clinical personnel receive real-time alerts when a patient’s condition de-stabilizes;
  • Patient falls can be avoided by real-time notification of unusual patient movement to care team;
  • Doctors and nurses can access real-time patient information such as automated vital signs captured within the EMR;
  • Two-way communication is established between the medical devices and the EMR, eliminating transcription error;
  • Caregivers get a summary view of all relevant health information at a glance, and
  • Location, status, and usage of caregivers, patients, and equipment can be monitored throughout the hospital enterprise.

These devices and applications utilize a combination of network and wireless technologies. The resulting wireless environment is a combination of system dedicated frequencies, such as Wi-Fi (802.11), ZigBee® (802.15.4), ultrasound, or infrared.

Overview

The “Hospital Patient Smart Room” was designed and developed by the RFID Healthcare Consortium supported by healthcare technology companies. The objective of the Hospital Patient Smart Room is to demonstrate the changing healthcare patient environment by integrating advanced clinical devices with layers of interconnectivity among supporting technologies, such as RFID and RTLS, and point-of-care information delivery and communications devices. The
combination of these clinical devices, systems and supporting technologies addresses many of the issues impacting workflow and potentially impacting patient care and safety.

The Hospital Patient Smart Room functions to enhance and validate patient information, minimize errors, and optimize the dissemination of validated patient data. This enhances overall patient environment of care and increases patient safety and satisfaction.

Demonstration

The Hospital Patient Smart Room was designed to simulate a realistic patient care environment, demonstrating the dynamic interaction between patient, staff, equipment and technology. The patient care scenarios focus on specific applications or use cases. The use cases
are designed to demonstrate how integrated systems can reduce errors, provide timely delivery of critical data to the point-of-care, enable data validation, increase patient safety, and optimize staff efficiency. This enhances the overall environment of care. Within the Hospital Smart Room, various medical devices, connectivity solutions, and enhanced communications platforms - along with RFID and RTLS systems - were integrated to create a dynamic environment of care. Specific application use cases outlined below were developed and incorporated into the scenario, highlighting solutions to the complex staff workflows and patient care environment.

Hospital Patient Smart Room at HIMSS 11 (part 1)

Hospital Patient Smart Room at HIMSS 11 (part 2)

DOWNLOAD the RFID and RTLS Showcase Handbook (only for RFIDba Members)