Infection Control & Contact Tracing

Trackerwave’s RTLS can aid in infection control in hospitals by quickly finding cases of infectious disease, and even locating potential carriers before they show symptoms. Knowing where a particular patient is within the facility, whom he has come in contact with and which medical scopes and other equipment have been used on him, can help reduce the spread of infectious disease. Keeping track of all of a patient’s movements and contacts can create a database of very valuable information.

In the event of an infectious outbreak, it is important to be able to trace every person or entity that has potentially come in contact with the disease. By recording every patient contact with staff, visitors and other patients, a list of people who have been exposed to an illness can quickly be generated. In addition, it’s important to keep track of where a patient has been, what areas of the hospital might have been contaminated, and what surfaces were in contact with the patient. This helps to effectively contain an outbreak without shutting down a hospital, as well as provide targeted communications to only those at risk, minimizing the possibility of unnecessary panic throughout the facility.

An electronic data collection system also allows for faster response times. When needed, the patient tracking information can be reported within seconds from anywhere in the facility. When it comes to limiting the spread of infectious disease, time matters. The faster the infection can be contained; the more control can be gained over the size of the potential outbreak.