Healthcare as an industry is investing loads in RFID technology. Surgical device tracking presents hospitals with exclusive benefits driving patient safety.
FREEMONT, CA: Ensuring patient safety has become an increasingly technology-dependent process for most healthcare providers today. As part of this tech boom in the medical environment today, a mistake can come to a high cost to all parties involved, right from a medical device manufacturer to caregiver.
Tracking medical device operations and collecting real-time data on device life cycle marks a full stop for all data-driven dangerous errors that could happen! Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) supports automated medical device tracking to improve efficiency and save costs for hospitals, which are managing hundreds of equipment across extensive facilities. Here is more to it.
Automated asset tracking using RFID technology helps improve care quality and thereby enhances patient safety. There are chances that a care provider may waste precious time monitoring the medical device, and this could result in delayed surgeries. Automated tracking saves time and helps health providers with hard to locate equipments. This tracking also improves patient safety; it evades human error. Because of human error, it will become difficult to accurately account for all the required surgical devices before, during, and after the procedure. Incorrect instrument lists or time constraints can compromise accuracy in surgery. Paired with RFID readers in the hospital or practice setting, RFID tags can significantly reduce the risk of the device being lost or misplaced.
Sterilization issues are plaguing hospitals and medical facilities, creating instances where preventable problems with equipment or error in protocols lead to more significant mistakes. Some companies are fighting infection in healthcare settings to provide complete confidence that medical objects are thoroughly sterilized. They are using RFID technology to ensure automated compliance on cleaning and reprocessing protocols. Hence the system can offer secure identification of connected components and commodities, identification of samples, and staff authentication for secure access to medical devices.
Accurate medical device tracking also plays a significant role in accreditation and compliance with government regulations to improve patient safety. Verifying the items and surgical equipment related to the procedure using a standardized list is part of the compliance protocol. The details can be verified before and after the procedure to ensure that everything necessary is in place before the procedure starts or no surgical instruments are lost after the surgery. To prevent these kinds of errors, all surgical devices are inventoried and recounted after all procedures. When a particular item is missing, staff can locate it before the procedure is completed. RFID tagging of each device allows hospitals to document each vital instruments statistics, which contributes to safety, asset management, and cost savings.
Devices including integrated RFID technology can be tracked throughout the supply chain at its serial number level, enhancing efficiency and accuracy in manufacturing, shipping, and distribution process for device manufacturers. OEMs can automate work in progress tracking by employing a durable passive RFID into their products at the initial stage of the manufacturing process. This enables automated data collection, which improves product traceability.
With the more widespread use and proper application of RFID technology, smart medical devices can be made even smarter. Medical facilities and the medical device industry are demanding more exceptional capabilities and safeguards from equipment and component suppliers as there is an increased need for improved performance and safety. By integrating reliable, easy-to-use technologies like RFID hospitals and caregivers can concentrate on the job that matters most for the delivery of quality patient care.
