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Using wireless in the healthcare sector

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by debate

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What do you think about the use of wireless devices in the healthcare sector? Do you agree that they offer many benefits to users? What drawbacks do you think providers should consider? Share your comments about using wireless devices in the healthcare sector, as discussed in the May 27 Healthcare IT e-newsletter.

If you haven't subscribed to our free Healthcare IT e-newsletter, sign up today!

https://www.techrepublic.com/techmails.jhtml?repID=r001

13 replies

by areets

It would be helpful to me to have the direct URL to the newsletter in question.

TSP

by hal 9000

But back to the subject The only real problem with using wireless in any field particuarly where security is important is the security angle.

There is no doubt that wireless give you a almost unlimited amount of flexibility in networking but my main concern is just the security angle as this form of networking is extremely hard to tie down and make secure.

You are always finding security flaws after the event which in the medical field could lead to some massive Law Suits if the patient data was to get out so to speak.

Then theres the possible problem of the wireless network interfering with existing medical equipment like ECG's and the like as these are very suspecitable to interference of any RF kind so you would have to look atwhat medical equipment you have in place and what impact that wireless networking may have on it and then take into account any possible litergation if your patient details where to be stolen {the system hacked} as it is always far easier than with a hard wired network and the top line security will cost you far more than running some wire through the place.

by areets

......like to repeat ourselves. You also demonstrate how "individualism" is interpreted, today. Is it so difficult to offer me that direct URL.

Thanks
Andrew Reets

by hal 9000

Sorry but as I was doing several things at once that took me away from the computer where I placed this posting I may have repeated myself a few times but I was trying to get across the security problems and the possible interference with the medical equipment that in general use in most medical establishments.

Other than those problems wireless could be a simple to instigate alternative to a hard wired network.

by zlitocook

Direct connect and encripted connection! Even then a person with a external connection can look,scan,decript or run programs to gain access to the Lan, servers, local desktop or call and receive a password to get into the network. Wlans are not ready to get into the HIPPA area or any other secure area yet. I have been helping a few companys with installing Wlans and well I can get into any within a few minutes.

by trl

Wireless technology can be a great boon to clinical applications when clinical applications

FINALLY BECOME WORTH USING!!

Most clinical applications suck (highly technical term, that). Yes, the first complaint you hear is nurses don't want to push a cart with a workstation around the hospital, or run back and forth from the bedside to the nursing station. But that, I think, is a smokescreen.

Too many clinical apps amount to redundant record keeping, or pushing routine data entry tasks down to the nurse. Until the nusring profession (together with the legal profession) rationalizes charting and there is "enough" manufacturing automation type technology AND THE PROCESSES TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT at the floor level, information technology, wireless or not, will be a tough sell, and maybe a loser. When IT actually makes the job of nursing easier, they'll be on board in a heartbeat.

There's the challenge -- not the network so much as the software. When the software is actually worthwhile, the flexible network and small devices will be a help. But the make-or-break is the software and the production processes the software supports. Both have to change.

t

by tony

We currently use the wireless in our facility. When I first proposed it, I heard many of the same remarks that you identified. Now that they have been using the system for a little over a year, you can't pry it away. The patient registration staff uses it in the Emergency Department to register patients at the bedside. The physicians use it to enter their lab and x-ray request, and receive the results. We use a wireless cart with a laptop, and they have no problem pushing them from room to room. In fact, they often use the cart to carry their other items such as stethoscopes, light, etc. The users have embraced it much stronger than I had anticipated. When something makes their job easier, they will use it. If it doesn?t, they will not useit.

by trl

If the choice is

"Use a poor system tethered to a wire"

vs.

"Use a poor system at the point of service"

that makes the nurses' poorly-designed jobs easier, and of course they'll take advantage of it.

What I'm trying to say is that "more technology" much less any particular technology is not even close to being central to the problems of information management in healthcare.

t

by emmlson11

In our world of technological advancement, wireless devices are needed in the health sector because it will improve the health of patients when medical personnels use them effectively in reacting to the needs of the patients.

Wireless devices arethe latest in computer technology nowadays, therefore they are necessary in the health care sector.

Em

by trl

The first statement here is a tautology -- yes, when medical personnel use systems effectively to address patient needs, the systems are indeed a good thing. So what? The systems in question are suboptimally effective (he said as charitably as he could) in the first place.

The question I have is whether a dollar spent on WLAN is better for patients or providers than a dollar spent on fundamental process and system design issues. WLAN chips around the edges, nothing more. It makes the vendorsand IT staff look like they are doing something, letting them avoid addressing the fundamental problems. It is "sound and fury, signifying nothing."

The second statement is just silly -- the USA has been at the forefront of applying the latest technology to medicine, and what improvement in outcomes has it got us? What improvement in efficiency?

t

by tony

I may have misunderstood your point. As a former nurse, I know all too well what you are saying. Although I will say that things have improved dramatically over the past 3 years. At our facility the users determine which product they prefer, and we review it with them pointing out various issues, and together we select the product that meets the needs(considering both budget and their preferences). I believe in the use of technology only when benificial, not technology for technologies sake. Your are correct, automating a bad process only creates additional problems.

by debate

What do you think about the use of wireless devices in the healthcare sector? What concerns do you have about implementing wireless devices? How much weight do you give security issues? Share your comments about implementing wireless devices, as discussed in the June 10 Healthcare IT e-newsletter.

by tzu2

No Problem!
My company has built an end to end Development/Deployment environment which enables any legacy application to be safely and securely deployed (supporting all HIPAA First Rule issues) across any unsecure network... whether it's wireless,the Internet, etc.

www.su-networking.com/mobility

A solution is now in final testing capturing medpass results.

Tony

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