4600 2D Imager Delivers Increased Point-Of-Care Safety

MDI Hospital was in search of a 2D patient wristband system to increase point-of-care safety and ensure the 5 Rights initiative – right patient, right drug, right time, right dose, and right form. The solution replaces an outdated linear barcode system with the introduction of 2D barcoded wristbands and ruggedized 2D imagers with an increased read rate.

The Business Challenge
Driven by new industry and hospital specific directives to improve patient safety systems, hospitals are beginning to invest in barcode-based systems to ensure the 5 Rights.

For the critical patient wristband component of patient identification, healthcare systems integrators routinely deploy conventional linear barcodes and linear laser scanners. Due to the limited print space available on wristbands, especially in pediatric applications, linear barcodes are simply not viable. The net result is barcode reading systems that are, at best, difficult to use. In the worst-case deployments, the systems do not work at all.

In 2004, MDI Hospital, a 25-bed critical access hospital on the coast of Maine, decided to invest in a new healthcare information system, including the capability to implement a barcode-based patient safety system. After considering proposals from two healthcare independent software vendors, MDI Hospital, selected CPSI. The new system was implemented in Q1 and Q2 of 2004. The CPSI system includes several healthcare information system (HIS) software modules and a patient safety system for matching patient wristbands with medications to comply with the 5 Rights initiative.