Wireless Interactive Patient Safety Enhancement System- A Case Study of a Medical Center

Abstract

Nowadays, medical centers are working on setting a safe medicating environment by using information technology. This research is to build up a wireless interactive patient safety enhancement system for medical staff, which combines Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Wireless Network, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) and Front-Monitoring System. This system is to improve patients’ safety environment, control Emergency Room（ER） medicating quality, and can efficiently practice in medical processes. The main development tools for this research are C# (Mobile Device) and Borland Delphi 5.0, and the subject is the ER of one of the medical centers in Taipei City. Through the combination of techniques like Radio Frequency Identification, Wireless Network, Personal Digital Assistant, Front Monitoring System and so on, we can identify patients by non contact identification and get medical record immediately. Meanwhile this system can record the history of the interaction between medical staff and patients. It can also give alarm when reporting a high risk testing result and give medicine safety suggestion in order to improve the correctness and instantaneousness of patients’ medical information and create a safe environment for patients. This research indicates that through the simple interface of PDA and Front-Monitoring System, medical staff can take control of the most updated medical record of patients, thus to improve the relationship of medicine and patients. The evaluation of the use of this new technology shows high acceptance and satisfaction and medical staff also views this system as having positive influence on improving a safe environment.