Como o RFID está sendo usado na área da saúde

How RFID is being used in healthcare

May 23, 2024 Roberto Magalhães

During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals have used RFID technology to identify and locate employees who have been in contact with infected patients to help with containment. But this is just one of the uses that this technology can have in the healthcare sector.

Technology is changing the way professionals do their work in almost every industry. Healthcare is no exception, with databases, artificial intelligence (AI), analytics, robots and the Internet of Things (IoT) providing assistance with a variety of tasks. Thus, the doctor of a patient with hypertension can provide the patient with a device that tracks the condition and automatically sends the information back to him. Hospital administrators can deploy robots to perform simple tasks such as taking temperatures and serving food to patients.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) in healthcare is another technology that is becoming more widespread. But how does RFID work in healthcare and what is RFID mainly used for? In the sections below we look at how RFID is used in hospitals, how it is used to track patients, other uses of RFID, the benefits and challenges, and what's next for RFID in healthcare settings.

What is RFID?

Before we dive into RFID in healthcare, let's look at what RFID is and how it works. RFID is a wireless technology that transfers data from an electronic tag using radio waves. It is used for tracking and data collection.

This technology has been used in many industries, including manufacturing, retail and logistics, particularly for equipment identification and management. For example, a manufacturer can attach RFID tags to inventory to easily track how much of a specific raw material it has and know when to order more.

RFID can also be used in this way in healthcare settings, such as to track medications and equipment. But in this industry, its uses also extend to tracking people.

How is RFID used to track patients?

“Tracking people” may seem a little scary, but there are many reasons to track patients in a medical setting. For example, RFID tags can be attached to newborn babies to give new parents peace of mind, knowing that if the unthinkable – a mix-up or a kidnapping – happens, their child can be located and found, even when these scenarios are highly unlikely. . in the first place. The system sounds an alarm if a child is removed from a specific area or ensures that the child is placed with the correct mother, who wears a corresponding tag.

Patient tracking is also useful for people suffering from cognitive disorders such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease. These patients tend to wander outside their protected environments and become lost or disoriented, or even put themselves in danger. Similar to babies, when these patients exceed certain parameters, their family members or healthcare professionals can be alerted so they can intervene and prevent harm.

Finally, the importance of providing appropriate care to patients being prepared for surgery cannot be overstated. RFID tags can help ensure that healthcare providers provide the appropriate procedures at the appropriate times. They can also help ensure that the correct surgery is performed on each patient.

How is RFID used in hospitals?

In addition to preparing for surgery, RFID patient tracking systems can be used for regular care, to ensure, for example, that the appropriate medication is administered to the right patient or to monitor symptoms. It can also be used for aftercare, such as when patients return home but still need to be monitored. During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals have used RFID technology to identify and locate employees who have been in contact with infected patients to help with containment.

As mentioned above, RFID technology can also be used to track inventory. For example, the supply of medicines in hospitals is constantly changing and must be monitored to ensure that there are enough medicines available to treat the patients who need them. Consider the time and effort involved in the traditional approach of manually counting barcodes. RFID tags can eliminate this task and provide more accurate counts.

The same process can be used for other medical supplies such as gauze, gloves and vials. These disposable items can be tracked to ensure the right quantity is always available. Clean and disinfected surgical equipment and tools are just as important as adequate medications and other medical supplies. RFID tags can be used to identify which instruments are ready for use.

The following video demonstrates these uses:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkbU-hAcZM8

Challenges of RFID in healthcare

Challenges with using RFID in healthcare include technological limitations such as RFID transmissions that cause electromagnetic interference (EMI) in biomedical devices. For example, EMI can cause medical equipment to shut down. This challenge is highly problematic in a medical setting, with the potential to decrease, rather than increase, the quality of care.

As with all digital technologies, another challenge is data security, which is especially important in healthcare where highly sensitive health information is exchanged. Data privacy can be disrupted when hackers intercept data during transmission or find other ways to access it.

RFID technology in healthcare also requires a large initial financial investment to implement, which can be a barrier for some medical facilities. The larger the installation, the higher the cost when you take into account the tags and all the supporting technology needed to make them work, including middleware, databases, servers and applications, not to mention training staff or hiring new staff. people familiar with such systems.

What’s next for RFID in healthcare

While RFID is already an exciting technology that is helping healthcare professionals in a variety of clinical settings provide better care, it is likely to improve in the coming years. Here are some developments to watch out for: