The lack of visibility into the location of assets such as infusion pumps, ECG monitors and other high value medical equipment can cost a hospital thousands, and sometimes hundreds of thousands of pounds a year, depending on the asset base. This is because staff’s time is used inefficiently looking for missing equipment and the cost of leasing and purchasing equipment to offset losses and theft. In addition, patients can experience unsatisfactory service as a result of long waiting times caused by this wasted time searching for assets.

Asset tracking is increasingly regarded as an effective way of addressing these inefficiencies. This type of solution enables a hospital’s wireless LAN infrastructure to actively track assets through the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, which are attached to key medical equipment. This technology is enabling hospitals to reduce the financial impact of the inefficiencies outlined above in three key areas – equipment utilisation; patient care and safety; and staff productivity.

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