LEXINGTON, KY – Univeristy of Kentucky Healthcare plans to implement a Wi-Fi-based Real-Time Location System for tracking medical equipment at the Albert B. Chandler Hospital.

The hospital, a member of the University HealthSystems Consortium, will deploy 2,600 Ekahau RTLS tags in its approximately 500-bed facility.

"Because Ekahau RTLS operates over any brand of Wi-Fi network, it was the ideal solution for leveraging our existing infrastructure," said Jean Sargeant, director of supply chain for UK HealthCare. "The solution enables us to track IV pumps, wheeled beds and wheelchairs quickly and cost-effectively with the accuracy we require."

The RTLS tags are based on 802.11 Wi-Fi networks and designed to deliver room and bed-level support without the requirement of chokepoints or readers. The tags support two-way communication, enabling location information to be sent to hospital systems and have alerts and upgrades sent back. IT staff at Chandler Hospital can create zones with the tags to help ensure that equipment is where it needs to be in the facility.

"Being a software-based solution, Ekahau RTLS gives us the flexibility to easily add more tags and expand location tracking capabilities over a wider geographic area," said James Wellman, manager of the technical analysis and implementation group for UK HealthCare information technology systems.

"This aspect was very important to us, knowing that, with ongoing construction, we would soon have a larger facility in which we needed to track our equipment," he added. "Ekahau RTLS also gives us the flexibility to expand the solution to other facilities should we desire, and track our mission-critical assets – no matter where they are located – from a centralized location."

UK HealthCare is a member of the University HealthSystem Consortium. The UHC has a member list of 294 hospitals, many of which support Wi-Fi networks for data communications.