HealthData Management

LOC ATING

THE VALUE OF RTLS

Real-time location systems are ;nding new niches where their tracking powers can be put to use.

By Elizabeth Gardner

Hospitalsareusingthecur- rent generation of real- time location systems to do more than locate things, or even people. While only 10 to 15 percent of hospitals have an RTLS installed, according to a survey released last year by KLAS Research, Orem, Utah, they’re using the data generated by the systems to reform work;ows— saving time, money, construction costs, and the need to hire extra sta;. ;ey’re

even increasing the e;ciency of collecting co-pays at discharge.

Jay Deady, CEO of RTLS vendor Awarepoint, San Diego, estimates that with EHR integration, equipment tracking, and people tracking, a fully implemented RTLS can save an institution between $3 and $7 for every dollar invested. About 190 hospitals have Awarepoint’s technology installed, and they have seen a return on areas ranging from ED throughput to infection prevention, he says.

“We can track the work;ow and see if a piece of equipment hasn’t been cleaned properly and is about to go into a patient’s room,” Deady says. “It’s not the fault of the caregiver, who found it in the clean equipment area. But our system can ;re alerts and get the equipment out of the room before the patient is infected.” He says about 20 percent of equipment is not properly cleaned between uses.