The system automates proximity tracking across patients, staff, and assets to support faster, more informed infection prevention decisions.
RFiD Discovery, a provider of real-time location and tracking solutions for healthcare, launched a new automated contact tracing for infection control solution, designed to help hospitals identify potential exposure events, support infection prevention teams, and reduce the spread of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs).
HCAIs affect millions of patients worldwide each year, prolonging hospital stays, increasing mortality, and placing strain on clinical resources. Manual contact tracing processes are time-consuming and often incomplete, particularly in complex clinical environments, according to a release from RFiD Discovery. RFiD Discovery’s new solution automates the collection of proximity data to potentially enable faster and more informed decision-making during infection incidents.
“Effective infection control depends on having the right information at the right time,” says Arron Duddin, general manager at RFiD Discovery, in a release. “Our automated contact tracing solution gives infection prevention teams clear visibility of interactions between patients, staff, and assets, allowing them to respond quickly, reduce risk, and maintain safer hospital environments.”
Automated, real-time insight across the hospital
The solution uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology, with patients wearing BLE wristbands and staff carrying BLE-enabled ID badges. When individuals or tagged assets come into close proximity, the system automatically records the interaction, including duration, distance, time, and location, without any manual intervention.
BLE gateway readers and anchors installed throughout the hospital capture location and proximity data and feed it into a central platform, providing real-time alerts, visual dashboards, and reports. Once an infected person is identified, infection control teams can see who may have been exposed, where interactions occurred, and which areas require targeted cleaning or further investigation.
The solution is designed to integrate with existing hospital infrastructure and can be deployed as an entry-level system or expanded to support wider real-time location services, including asset tracking, patient flow optimisation, sterilization tracking, and automated cleaning workflows.
Photo caption: New automated contact tracing for infection control solution
Photo credit: RFiD Discovery
