Hospital installs RFID

The DMC Harper University Hospital will implement a radio frequency identification (RFID) enabled inventory management system to store, track, and manage the utilisation of high-cost devices and supplies supporting cardiology services, according to Business Wire.

Developed by Mobile Aspects, the system, called iRISupply, uses an RFID tracking architecture to automate charge capture, inventory management, device expiration management, and other key operational processes within the patient care setting.

The organisation will implement 14 iRISupply cabinet units to manage the storage and utilisation of implantable stent devices within their cardiac catheteriation laboratory suites at the DMC Harper University Hospital location.

The Blue Shield of California Foundation awarded third-quarter grants totalling $3.98 million to boost access to healthcare, support the use of healthcare technology, and "promote healthy relationships", says Biz Journals.

"As we await legislative action in Sacramento on comprehensive healthcare reform, we at Blue Shield of California Foundation will continue our efforts to strengthen the safety net and support health technology innovation," Crystal Hayling, the San Francisco-based foundation's president and CEO, said.

The latest round of grants brings the foundation's annual total to date to $22.6 million, according to the statement. Last year, it awarded $27.1 million in grants and allocated more than $1 million to additional educational and research activities.

On The Go Technologies Group , a multi-industry computer hardware, software and systems integrator, has completed negotiations with an industry leader in breakthrough software technology in the field of 2D/3D medical diagnostics, to be its exclusive distribution partner in Canada, reports CNN Money.

The New York-based affiliate's pioneering software technology provides physicians a quantum leap in diagnostic tools, both extending lives by enabling non-invasive and accurate visualisation for medical problems found within various organs of the body, and lowering the net cost of providing health care worldwide.

Its V3D-Colon is the market leader in virtual colonoscopy software. Although colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths, has a prevention rate of over 90% when pre-cancerous polyps are detected early, an estimated 80% to 85% of the population is never screened, due in large part to the discomfort, sedation and risk factors of conventional optical colonoscopy.