RFID World 2007: система инвентаризации для медиков

Мнение жюри конференции RFID World 2007 было единодушным. В категории "Наилучшее применение RFID" из 15 претендентов победила команда разработчиков из медицинского центра Mercy (Mercy Medical Center), Edwards Lifesciences и фирмы WaveMark Inc.

Коллектив предложил систему инвентаризации от WaveMark на основе 13.56 МГц RFID. С ее применением стало удобно следить за сохранностью и использованием дорогих медицинских устройств, таких как сердечно-сосудистые эндопротезы (cardiovascular stents). RFID Point-of-Service (POS) ридеры размещены в специальных комнатах где проводится контроль использования упаковок.

Раньше инвентарная запись велась вручную. Ежедневно надо учитывать более 2,000 единиц расходных материалов для хирургии. До сих пор не было системы, контролирующей запасы материалов с истекающим сроком годности. Учет был трудоемок и не исключал ошибок.
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The Mercy RFID project attacked a business process that is extremely dependent on information integrity – life-sustaining medical supplies. Not only did the RFID solution enable the Cath Lab to save significant time in the goods receipt process, but it also enabled vital information sharing between Mercy Medical and its supplier, Edwards Lifesciences. This collaboration produced substantial, measurable benefits for Mercy (inventory awareness, optimized safety stock/inventory on hand, reduced shrink and waste from expiring products, and more accurate billing) as well as intangible benefits (improved responsiveness for life saving procedures). Specific metrics showing the value of the RFID project include a 30% reduction opportunity of high-value inventory (average cost of $1,000 per item) and reduced labor of up to 400 man hours annually. The new system also led to improved tracking of returns (expired product, defective product) owed to the hospital from vendors.

The Mercy team had to overcome the challenges involved in introducing a new technology to the Cath Lab without disrupting daily operations. The team devised and executed an audit process that provided evidence of the accuracy of passive RFID-based inventory tracking within the Cath Lab environment. The weekly audits comparing manual count with the RFID-generated count showed 99.9% accuracy. This team did an outstanding job of process modification and human change management, resulting in a smooth implementation of the new system.

The healthcare industry is plagued by high costs and operational inefficiencies. The Mercy RFID project laid the groundwork for others within the healthcare industry to attack the problem of inventory management for high-cost, perishable items. In addition, by freeing up resources, this RFID application allows medical staff to focus on its core mission of providing excellent medical care to its patients.