Germany joins hospital RFID pilots

Germany has joined the growing number of countries experimenting with wireless tagging of hospital patients to improve safety and provide easier access to data.

The Klinikum SaarbrÜcken in western Germany, this month launched a pilot project covering 1000 patients in collaboration with technology partners Siemens Business Services, Intel and Fujitsu Siemens Computers.

In addition to making patient data readily available, the new working methods produced by the technology are expected to improve safety in drug dosage and administration.

An announcement from the project team said: “In future, patients admitted to the Klinikum SaarbrÜcken will be given a wristband with an integrated RFID chip containing their patient number. Doctors and nursing staff can read the number using tablet PCs and PDAs and thereby identify the patient in seconds.

“This identification enables authorised persons to access a protected database containing the patient’s data, including details of any drugs to be administered and the correct dosages, online via a WLAN. Unauthorised access is prevented using the latest encryption technology.”

Patients taking part in the pilot project will also be able to use an information terminal to call up their medical information, including blood pressure levels, weight, and treatment or discharge dates. They can also find out about their condition and the standard treatments.

The SaarbrÜcken project is based on an RFID solution that is already being used at the Jacobi Medical Center in New York City and has been hailed by the Health Care Research & Innovations Congress (HCRIC) as an innovation in the area of patient safety.

In the UK last October Birmingham Heartlands Hospital started to pilot a wireless active tagging system for ear, nose and throat patients, with links to electronic records containing digital photographs, a simple electronic record and an easily-updated electronic operating list.