El Rio Community Health Center Selects Socket Scanners For Prescription Delivery Program

Socket Mobile, Inc., an innovative provider of mobile productivity solutions, recently announced that El Rio Community Health Center, an Arizona community health center serving more than 80,000 low-income patients in 2007, has chosen the Socket Secure Digital Scan Card, a small bar code scanner that plugs into a smartphone, for its prescription delivery program. The El Rio mobile solution was recently chosen as one of the five finalists in the Healthcare category for the Computerworld Honors Award, a distinction in the technology space.

To achieve the strict accuracy and accountability required for handling prescriptions, El Rio employs a tracking solution that enables the health center to confirm delivery, track the package's path and obtain signatures and comments upon delivery -- all remotely and in real-time. The Socket SD Scan Cards allow delivery drivers to scan prescription bar codes at all points from any of El Rio's four pharmacies to patients receiving home prescription delivery services across Tucson. El Rio's complete mobile solution uses Socket SD Scan Card attached to Palm Treo smartphone loaded with POD Verify software.

El Rio Community Health Center is one of the largest community health centers in the United States, donating $13M dollars worth of charity care to the Tucson, AZ community in 2007. El Rio's free home delivery service gives all patients new options to receive the care they need. Socket Mobile's electronic mobile solution enables El Rio to manage delivery records electronically. To have permanent records of patient service requests, El Rio exports delivery information in real-time to internal accountability systems using POD Verify software.

"El Rio's mission is to provide accessible and affordable healthcare to all who need it, and our prescription delivery program supports this by offering access to all patients, regardless of disability or transportation situation," said Luis Lopez, transportation supervisor at El Rio Community Health Center. "We can track, in real-time, the delivery of prescriptions from our drivers, enabling access to information critical to establishing accountability for a healthcare provider."

"We are excited to be working with El Rio and providing our SD Scan Cards as a part of this important patient-centric solution," said Bob Zink, senior vice president of worldwide sales and marketing at Socket Mobile. "Socket has a proven track record working with healthcare providers to develop secure mobile solutions. The SD Scan Card Series 3, along with our Cordless Hand Scanner Series 9, are ideal for smartphone applications in healthcare where bar code data capture is critical."

About Socket Mobile, Inc.
Socket makes mobility computing and productivity work. The company is a one-stop supplier of mobile computing hardware systems, offering a handheld mobile computer specifically designed for business mobility use and an extensive portfolio of essential mobile data collection and networking peripherals that enable mobile automation and productivity increases. The company also offers OEM solutions. Socket is headquartered in Newark, Calif. and can be reached at www.socketmobile.com.

SOURCE: Socket Mobile Inc.