Indoor geolocation is an effective way to track the position and use of medical equipment in real time. However, like any new system, there may be challenges to overcome to get it to work optimally.
Here are the most common medical equipment geolocation challenges in healthcare and how to overcome them:
High costs
Geolocation solutions can be expensive in terms of purchase, installation and maintenance. Several existing solutions on the market offer more or less complex and closed infrastructures, which can considerably increase the costs as much on the costs of the network, the licenses of use as on the geolocation chips to be acquired. To overcome this challenge, it is essential to make a cost and benefit analysis as well as establish a period before the return on investment for each solution available on the market. It is important to choose a geolocation solution that suits the specific needs of hospitals.
Signal interference
The Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth signals used for geolocation may be disturbed by other wireless signals in the environment. Usually, the solutions on the market have obtained their certifications in order to be usable in health establishments. To overcome this challenge, it is important to use reliable and certified geolocation technology that has passed tests in real environments. The reputation of the company offering the geolocation solution should also be considered.
Compatibility issues
By default, geolocation systems are not compatible with other hospital systems that are not from the same company offering the geolocation solution. Some bridges can be made between software solutions and medical equipment, but the current trend is more oriented towards closed systems. To overcome this challenge, it is important to choose a system that is compatible with existing systems and to work closely with the different departments and suppliers to ensure successful integration or possible collaboration between the different solution providers and equipment.
Privacy and Security
The geolocation of medical equipment can pose problems of confidentiality and security, particularly with regard to personal data. In Quebec, data security is a key issue. To overcome this challenge, it is important to ensure that data is stored securely and to comply with data protection laws and regulations. In Quebec, it is possible to implement geolocation solutions within the walls of a hospital so that it is in complete control of its data.
In conclusion, geolocation of medical equipment can present challenges such as high costs, signal interference, compatibility issues, and privacy and security issues. However, by taking these elements into consideration from the start of geolocation projects, these challenges can easily be overcome. Thus, hospitals can leverage geolocation to improve medical equipment management and healthcare delivery.
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