Case Study: Increase Productivity With RTLS

By Integrated Solutions magazine

Healthcare facilities are constantly faced with the challenge of effectively managing time and resources. With common shortages in staff, costly medical equipment, and an always-growing number of patients needing care, this can be a daunting task. Many healthcare facilities are turning to technology to help with the management of their resources. Nesconset Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation is one such facility.

With 240 residents, Nesconset is familiar with the challenges of managing resources. Furthermore, the nursing home contends with the issue of elopement (residents wandering and/or trying to leave the building). Residents must be monitored so that they remain safe and secure. For years, Nesconset used a ‘wanderguard' system to avoid elopement. A wanderguard system consists of a static receiver at each doorway and a band each resident wears on their wrist. As a resident comes within a certain distance of the door, the door will lock or an alarm will be set off. Although this system was doing a fair job of keeping residents inside the facility, the bands had no value otherwise.

Robert Heppenheimer, owner and executive director of Nesconset, was convinced that with advancing technology he could find a system that would do more. While researching RTLS systems, Heppenheimer met Raphael Feldman, CEO of Sysgen, a provider of RFID (radio frequency identification) solutions. Heppenheimer and Feldman spent the next two and a half years creating their own software, Tracpoint, based on needs of healthcare facilities such as Nesconset. The team considered three vendors to provide the RTLS hardware. They chose UWB (ultra wideband)-based hardware from Time Domain Corporation because they felt it was the most stable in supporting a real-time application. The hardware consists of a tag encased in a wristband that emits a signal that is read by receivers and antennas.

Used with permission from Integrated Solutions magazine