Healthcare workers today have a lot of assets at their disposal, and most have to be tracked. For example, are the hospital kitchens stocked with enough low-sugar options for diabetic patients? Where are the sterilized towels for the operating theater? Does each ICU bed have a medical computer nearby that is ready for use?
Medical asset tracking systems ensure every important piece is accounted for. Previously, this was done manually using pen and paper. Today's systems are digital, using computers and tracking technologies such as RFID.
- What Is A Medical Asset?
- Tracking Assets In Healthcare: How It's Done
- Benefits of Tracking Medical Assets
- Selecting the Right Medical Asset Tracking System
What Is A Medical Asset?
In healthcare, a medical asset is any piece of equipment used to diagnose, monitor, rehabilitate, or treat patients. While an asset is usually physical, like a box of gauze or a medical computer tablet, it can also be non-physical (such as electronic health records software).
Medical assets can be broken down into five different categories:
Medical Equipment
Electronics like X-ray machines, MRI scanners, and patient monitors are examples of medical equipment. Non-electronics like stretchers, gurneys, crutches, and wheelchairs also fall under this category.
Medical Consumables
Medical assets that are constantly used and need restocking fall under this category. Bandages, latex gloves, and IV bags are examples of this asset.
IT Systems
Today's healthcare is highly digital, and healthcare IT plays a vital role in ensuring all the computers and networks involved run smoothly. Assets under this category range from the all-in-one medical PCs found in each patient's room to routers and switches found throughout a hospital.
Pharmaceuticals
This category involves drugs that are usually expensive, highly regulated, and perishable. Surgical anesthetics, prescription painkillers, and antibiotics are examples of such assets.
Transportation
Vehicles that move the patient about the medical facilities are counted as this type of asset. Ambulances are the most well-known example. Others include utility carts and similar vehicles owned by the healthcare group.
Tracking Assets In Healthcare: How It's Done
So, what is involved in medical asset tracking?
Each asset is inventoried based on specific details. When was it purchased? What department does it belong to? Who ordered it? The answers to these details and more are fed into a computer.
The asset is then assigned a unique marker or tag. In healthcare, the most common is Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), though barcodes and even GPS are also used.
As the asset travels throughout the medical group, its status is followed through scanning technologies like RFID readers. Location, usage, who's using it, etc., are noted and logged. For example, the paraphernalia of phlebotomists (needles, test tubes, gloves, etc.) are marked down as they're used to draw blood from patients.
Medical asset tracking systems can be set to do more than passively record data. A specialized type, real-time location system (RTLS), can be set to geofence or track specific assets within a particular area. If the asset leaves or is removed from that area, the RTLS will alert the appropriate authorities.
Benefits of Tracking Medical Assets
Medical asset tracking systems in healthcare provide numerous benefits.
Cost savings and budget optimization
Medical groups can know how their assets are being used in real time. They can then plan how to restock inventory in the most cost-effective manner. Example: Medical tracking can show seasonal shortages of vital supplies of bandages and blood. Based on that information, facilities can stock supplies at the right time and within the hospital budget.
Improved operational efficiency
Assets are tracked so they don't affect critical operations and procedures. For example, surgeries aren't delayed or rescheduled due to missing or shortage of surgical tools. Nurses and similar medical staff don't waste precious rounding time looking for misplaced equipment.
Minimized downtime and errors
Medical facilities like hospitals run on tight schedules. A breakdown of an MRI machine or other vital asset can result in massive delays and scheduling headaches.
Medical asset tracking systems can alert medical facilities when such assets need maintenance and repair. Advanced technologies like AI computers and predictive analytics can even schedule such work so they won't interfere with scheduled appointments.
Robust compliance management
Many medical assets, like ventilators and diagnostic machines, are highly regulated, with many requiring periodic inspections. Facilities can present real-time data to show regulators they are in compliance with the law.
Reduced theft
The importance of medical devices, healthcare equipment, and — especially — medicines makes them targets for theft. Medical asset tracking systems can deter would-be thieves, especially if displayed prominently (barcodes on drug bottles, RFID tags on equipment, etc.). And when theft does occur, the system can be used to find them. RTLS is especially useful when protecting costly or highly regulated assets.
Selecting the Right Medical Asset Tracking System
Healthcare groups looking to set up a tracking system should ask themselves the following questions:
What will you be using it for?
As covered earlier, medical facilities have a lot of assets. Does your group want to track all of them? Or start with specific ones and add more categories at a later date? Also, will you need additional capabilities like geofencing to keep vital assets secure?
What tags will you be using?
Each asset will need a tag to identify it. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Barcode tags will need to be scanned directly by a barcode reader. On the other hand, RFID tags can be scanned as long as they're within range of an RFID scanner, even if out of sight.
What tracking system works best for your needs?
Unsurprisingly, your tracking system will need to be able to work with your tags and their associated readers and scanners. Will there be different systems for each kind of tag? If so, they'll need to be able to sync with each other. You'll also have to decide if asset data is stored on the cloud or on-site in medical box PCs.
What is your budget?
Medical asset tracking systems cost widely vary. Barcodes and their readers cost less than an RFID setup. Data storage costs will depend on whether it's subscription-based or a set figure, and so on.
Keeping Track of Your Medical Assets with Cybernet
Medical assets are all the equipment used to directly and indirectly treat patients. Tracking such assets is vital to any healthcare organization. Today's medical facilities use medical computers and tracking technologies like RFID tags and RTLS to fulfill the daunting task.
Contact an expert at Cybernet if your healthcare group is looking to track its medical assets. Many of our medical computers and tablets already have scanning technology built into them: just turn on the PC and start reading that barcode! They have multiple ports, making it easy to plug in your current and even new readers and scanners.
None of our pre-built PCs are to your liking? Not a problem! We're an original equipment manufacturer, which gives us total control over our devices. We're confident we can custom-build the computer(s) to meet your tracking wants and needs.