Intel has rolled out a wireless network for local healthcare centre The Wits University Donald Gordon Medical Centre (WDGMC), in Johannesburg.
“One of the main reasons for this project was to enable the doctors practising at the WDGMC to work smarter and, being a technology leader, this was a perfect project for us,” says Gregory Cline, business development manager for healthcare at Intel.
The network has been installed to allow doctors working at the clinic to be able to access information on the run, rather than having to rely on deskbound PCs. “The drive behind this concept was to save the doctors time, but also to give them almost instant access to research, patient records and other doctors,” says Cline.
The company has also provided the hospital with eight Dell Inspiron Mini 9 netbooks, which can be used by doctors on the move.
Including wireless networking in the hospital has scope for more than quick access to medical records. It could be expanded to include access to wireless medical technologies and other information.
According to Sue Tager, medical director at WDGMC, the doctors are now able to arrange appointments, communicate with colleagues and receive updates on their schedules between operations or while moving between their consulting rooms in different hospitals.
Not all roses
Local technology research firm BMI-TechKnowledge, in a recent study on wireless healthcare and wireless technologies within hospitals, says these can be expanded to include remote care of patients and monitoring of equipment.
“However, there are a number of obstacles, or at least unanswered questions that will determine whether and to what extent, and if so, how rapidly this potential of wireless communication will be realised,” the company adds.
The company points to the security concerns around wireless technologies, which are easier to breach than wired offerings. It also notes that the possible benefits are still undefined and the context of wireless in the medical field needs to be expanded.
Open access
Intel says the first expansion plan will include allowing access to the network to patients.
“In the oncology department, treatment can last from three to six hours a day. For some patients, the boredom of long hours receiving treatment has been alleviated by access to e-mail and the Internet,” says Cline.
With the wireless network installed and running, the hospital is now looking at implementing an information system with specific applications to address administration of the hospital staff, he concludes.
Share