January 25, 2008 - Southeastern Regional Medical Center (SRMC), a major healthcare provider for southeastern North Carolina, said this week it selected the RadarFind Real Time Location System (RTLS) to track its large inventory of hospital equipment and medical devices.
The technology will be highlighted at RadarFind's booth during the 2008 HIMSS show in Orlando in February.
The indoor tracking system determines the location of mobile medical equipment throughout the hospital and displays this information via the hospital staff’s computer screens. Installing RadarFind’s RTLS will allow SRMC to significantly reduce equipment purchase costs and use the savings to add healthcare services.
RadarFind said it uses platform technology that overcomes the limitations associated with typical RFID and WiFi solutions. Designed to seamlessly integrate with existing hospital infrastructure and operations, RadarFind requires no new wiring or ceiling and wall penetration associated with adding WiFi access points. RadarFind also operates independently of a hospital’s critical IT network.
The RadarFind system can provide room-level accuracy without requiring ongoing calibration. Readers that plug into existing electrical outlets avoid interfering with hospital operations and staff processes since there is no need to close off patient rooms during installation. The maker says its intuitive software is simple to use and easily accommodates hospital staff skill levels.
“We recognized the necessity of an asset tracking system and began our search several years ago. At that time, the systems available did not achieve results that justified their prohibitive cost. RadarFind’s unique RTLS system is precise in locating equipment for more efficient maintenance and is a truly cost effective choice for helping us manage our operations,” said Charles Brady, director of clinical engineering for SRMC.
RadarFind says it offers affordable installation when compared with other systems. Readers that communicate with asset tags simply plug in to existing electrical outlets and those outlets can still be used for other electrical devices. Without the hidden costs of installing additional wiring and expanding a WiFi network, the maker says hospitals will see a rapid return on investment. The company said less than a year after installing the RadarFind system, Wayne Memorial Hospital, a 316-bed facility in Goldsboro, N.C. was able to reduce equipment purchases by more than $300,000.
RadarFind’s developers are currently working with SRMC administrators to further ensure that implementation will not disrupt nurses, doctors and patients. The system is expected to be fully operational by the second quarter of 2008.
For more information: www.radarfind.com, www.srmc.org
March 03, 2014 
