Speakers at the InSites Build 2015 conference held late last month believe they’ve found the next potential trend in the healthcare industry. The conference was sponsored by Intelligent InSites, a leader in real-time location systems software, and held at the Fargo Theatre in North Dakota, according to the news source Inforum.com.
The new medical technology attendees were most excited about is tracking software for medical equipment.
One of the speakers was Richard Andrews, the person in charge of such equipment at Infirmary Health. According to Andrews, this type of technology has reduced the turnaround time on cleaning and returning medical devices by 12% in his facilities. One of the biggest problems hospitals and medical facilities can run into is staff members hiding equipment they regularly use in improper holding locations.
“They’ll hide this stuff,” Andrews said. “We’ve found equipment we’ve been missing for years.”
It would no longer be possible for professionals to horde their favorite devices with this new tracking technology, which would make more equipment available to more people at a greater rate.
Another benefit of the software is that it can reduce the chance of spreading germs. A more accurate and monitored systems means less of a chance that a piece of equipment is reused before proper cleaning has taken place. This can be especially important for dental clinics and hospitals.
Similar to how electronic medical records can improve overall efficiency by 6% each year, thereby reducing the cost of healthcare, this type of software can contribute in this aspect as well. On top of equipment and devices, this sort of technology can be used to track supplies as well.
Jim Engelstad is a spokesman for Sanford Health and another proponent of the software at the conference. He explained how the close tracking of such things reduces the need to store excess items and materials, making it an overall more efficient process and saving money in the long-run.