Tomorrow’s operating room to harness Net, RFID

October 20, 2005 | Source: CNET News.com

To keep up with accelerating medical data, a “wall of knowledge” in the operating room will present the big picture, minute by minute, of the patient and surgical events from various data.

The digital display includes the patient’s name, weight, age, gender and the procedure he or she is undergoing. It includes a detailed list of medical staff on duty and where they are according to RFID tags they’re wearing. It lists critical information such as allergies, precautions and special needs, followed by charts on the patient’s heart rate, ventilation, fluids, body temperature and so on. That information is documented before, during and after the surgery.