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The fear factor
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24/10/2006
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One of the key developments in medical devices over the next few years is likely to be the growing use of wireless technology. Hospitals have been slow to adopt this technology so far, which is already widely used in most other areas. Yet wireless technology can not only save hospitals time and money, but also reduce cable clutter at a hospital bedside and allow patients to move around freely within the hospital grounds while being monitored.
Whilst the technology is available, many hospitals are still fearful of the ‘risks’ of rf wireless assisted devices, as is evident by the ‘switch mobiles off’ sign at the entrance of most hospitals.
This unnecessary hysteria stems from the early days of mobiles, when there was a concern over the robustness of some medical devices in the presence of rf energy. At the time, the Medical Devices Agency (MDA, now the Medical and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency MHRA), an agency of the Department of Health, surveyed 178 different models of medical device, including drug/fluid infusion devices, pulse oximeters, defibrillators and various monitors. While some manufacturers’ equipment was unaffected by rf, others failed catastrophically.
Electromagnetic compatibility (emc) protection has obviously improved in modern medical devices. However, hospitals still seem to make blanket bans on gsm phones, despite the recent update of a report by the MHRA which make sensible suggestions as to where gsm phones should be banned and where not.
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Author
Colin Smithers
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