RFID technology is in use in a variety of industries to improve efficiency by speeding up processing times and reducing errors. Medical prescription replenishment systems in hospitals are an excellent example of how RFID solutions can be used to benefit the health sector.
In 2015, NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital (NYM) traded in their time-consuming, inefficient, and paper-based system for replenishing medication trays with efficient RFID solutions. By placing RFID tags on medication, pharmacy technicians can save time by ensuring that medication is labelled properly. As a result, they then can use an RFID reader to accurately fill medication trays.
NYM’s success with this system is a perfect example of how RFID solutions have improved the medication replenishment system.
A study conducted by NYM found that, prior to adopting RFID, replenishment took an average of 25 to 30 minutes to fill a medication tray. Following the introduction of RFID tagging, consequently, processing times are reduced to around 60 seconds per tray. This is a huge amount of time savings, freeing up staff for other vital tasks.
RFID solutions improve medication accuracy by reducing human error. If a pharmacy technician accidentally takes the wrong medication from the stock room, the RFID reader will alert them. This improves accuracy, saves time and is safer for the health of patients by ensuring they receive the correct medication at all times.
NYM found that the return on investment after introducing RFID solutions for medication replenishment was therefore only three months. This fast return on investment is due to the reduction in both the replenishment times and the amount of staff needed to fill medication trays. So there are now more pharmacy technicians available to complete other tasks.
Accuracy and fast processing times are crucial in hospital operations. The health and recovery of patients depend on an efficient system for delivering medication. This also allows doctors, pharmacists, and also pharmacy technicians to effectively complete tasks. The time and money saved from RFID solutions can also benefit hospitals by allotting more staff as well as resources to other necessary operations.