Florida hospital uses real-time positioning system to track infusion pump and cold box temperature
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Florida medical company Health First uses a real-time location system (RTLS) to track 1,200 infusion mercury and special assets. Now, the company further uses the RTLS system provided by AeroScout to monitor the temperature of the refrigeration devices in its three hospitals.
If the infusion mercury is sent from a ward of the hospital to the entrance of the cleaning area, the system judges that the pump will be cleaned soon and is ready to be used again. If the pump is not cleaned and is sent directly to another ward, the system triggers an alarm indicating that the pump has not been handled properly. This system can also determine which pumps are currently in use, so that the management can understand the utilization rate of pumps and which pumps are used at any time, saving unnecessary search time.
Two years ago, the company installed the system at Cape Canaveral Hospital, Holmes Regional Medical Center and Palm Bay Hospital in Brevard County. The company is currently preparing to build the fourth hospital-Viera Hospital, which is expected to open in 2012 and will also apply this system at that time.
Since the hospital can now accurately grasp the location of the pump, the utilization rate of the pump has been improved, thereby saving costs, and there is even no need to purchase additional pumps for the new hospital. Each infusion pump costs about US$3,000, and Vieira Hospital may require 100-120 pumps. Therefore, AeroScout estimates that Health First can save at least $300,000.
Health First installs AeroScout active tags on some high-value assets. The tag sends its ID code to the existing Wi-Fi access points in the three hospitals. In the infusion pump application, the AeroScout T2 label is installed on a cable extending from each pump serial port. The tag requires the port to determine the on-off status of the pump, and then sends the information at a frequency of 2.4 GH, together with its ID code, to the nearest Wi-Fi access point.
“Knowing the location of the pump is very important, but it is especially important for us to know whether it is in use,” said Joel Cook, AeroScout’s head of medical solutions. In the future, he said, Health First may choose pumps with built-in Wi-Fi access points, but the AeroScout tag will still be used to provide location data (when the pump is off).
AeroScout’s MobileView asset tracking and management software obtains the ID code, location and status (on or off) of each pump, and then stores this information to facilitate real-time viewing by employees. MobileView software can track the movement path of the pump, and judge the movement direction of the pump based on its position. If the pump moves away from the predetermined path, the system will issue an alarm.
For example, when the pump leaves the patient room, it first moves to the storage area of the cleaning room, then to the disinfection area, and then to the cleaning storage area of another patient room. If the intermediate path is wrong, MobileView will send an alert via email or text message to the hospital’s biochemical department. This type of alert is very important to the hospital, Cook said, because this type of error-which often occurs when staff change shifts-can affect the health of the patient.
“This alert is very useful for patient safety and efficiency,” Cook said.It ensures that the items go through the normal cleaning process and also prevents the patient from receiving treatment from the dirty equipment
Eighteen months ago, Health First equipped the refrigerators in three hospitals with temperature monitoring functions. Each refrigerator is equipped with an AeroScout temperature monitoring label with a temperature sensor. After discussion between Health First and AeroScout, it decided to let the tag send a signal every 5 minutes. If the system detects that the temperature of the refrigeration equipment has exceeded the limit several times, the system will issue an alarm.
More frequent signal transmission means that the system can notify the management of the problem within 10-15 minutes, when the temperature of the refrigerator starts to rise-it may be due to equipment failure or the door being opened manually. Faster response time means quality assurance of medical items inside, AeroScout said.
If the refrigerator door is left open for a few hours, everything inside will deteriorate, Cook said.
So far, Health First has installed electronic tags on 2,500 assets and labeled 170 refrigerators and freezers. The time it takes for personnel to find the pump has dropped from an average of 30 minutes to a few minutes, Haithcox said. The company hopes to use these RFID data to increase pump utilization and double the existing 35% utilization rate.
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