LONDON — Late last month, we reported on a study by University of Amsterdam researchers published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggesting that the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) in hospitals can interfere with critical care medical equipment.
The report prompted one reader, Tuomo Rutanen, Vice President of Business Development at Ekahau Inc — a U.S based company with facilities in Finland and which specializes in Wi-Fi based RTLS location and network planning solutions — to pen some comments on the findings of the research team. His thesis is that while RFID is indeed vital to the healthcare sector, spectrum use needs to evolve to minimize the risk of interference.
Ekahau solutions are being used in more than 150 hospitals around the world, as well as by manufacturers, mining/oil/gas companies, government agencies and the military.
This is an edited version of Mr. Rutanen's comments.
" The RFID and healthcare industries were abuzz in late June with the publication of a University of Amsterdam study in the Journal of the American Medical Association reporting that RFID solutions commonly used in hospitals could interfere with life-sustaining medical equipment. Hospitals using the RFID technology cited in the report were in a panic, concerned that patients' lives could be endangered when moving past an RFID reader.
And, on the flip side, the RFID vendors were moving quickly to defend the safety and performance of their products.
The study clearly had its critics and further research is required to better understand the full impact of RFID technology on medical devices. However, the study did underscore two significant points:
* RFID usage in healthcare settings is going to continue to grow exponentially as its benefits for security, asset utilization and location tracking are realized; and
* The healthcare industry needs to re-evaluate spectrum utilization within their facilities to ensure that electromagnetic interference does not compromise patient safety.
Many healthcare facilities initially adopted 125 kHz active RFID systems because the devices operated at a low frequency enabling signals to have a long reach and, therefore, more reliability. However, 125 kHz devices require use of higher power to ensure the tag location can be identified accurately, which in turn increases the likelihood of interference with medical equipment, such as ventilators and external pacemakers.
Since the introduction of active RFID for healthcare, newer solutions have been developed that use standards-based technology, such as Wi-Fi. Working in the 2.4 GHz band or higher, these solutions require lower power and introduce far less electronic magnetic interference. In fact, many of these solutions are currently being integrated within medical devices for asset tracking and maintenance applications.
Now that the upper RF spectrum is available to perform the same functions without the power requirements and impact on medical devices, it may be time for the healthcare industry to consider retiring 125 kHz solutions altogether.
The concept of one RF band replacing another is not highly unusual. In the history of radio frequency spectrum, there have been numerous occasions where legacy bands have been forced out or required to change their use because of power or harmonics issues. When this occurs, it is generally the newer, more nimble, less invasive technologies that prevail.
Advancements in RFID technology have essentially rendered 125 kHz obsolete. And the University of Amsterdam study shines a light on the incompatibility of that spectrum with medical equipment that is pervasive around the world. Perhaps now is the time for the healthcare industry to evolve away from 125 kHz, before the consequences turn deadly."
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