HUP chose a combination of room and zone-level location precision across four buildings. Users querying the Radianse web-based software can see if a particular item is in one of 31 operating rooms, any equipment storage room — or pre- and post-operative care areas and adjoining spaces, all defined as “zones” by the Radianse system.

With a Radianse IPS, HUP’s clinical teams are able to find the specific resources necessary for each procedure. Hundreds of items — from surgical tables and accessories to specialized infusion pumps and monitors — are being tracked using active-RFID with location technology from Radianse. The ability to pinpoint where low inventory items are located is particularly valuable.

“When only two or three of a certain device are available and there are many different places they might have been used most recently, a lot of time is spent searching, and that’s not the best use of anyone’s time, particularly a nurse or other clinician who should be focused on direct patient care,” said Jim Mullen, M.D., associate executive director of HUP and corporate director of PeriOperative Services for the University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS).

“While it isn’t practical to have one of everything for every operating suite, Radianse has made it practical to use indoor positioning to more easily find what we need,” added Mullen. “The system was easy to install, connecting to our existing hospital LAN; the search capability is similar to an Internet search engine so it’s very easy to use; and we had the flexibility to choose the precision levels we wanted.”

Michael Dempsey, chief executive and technology officer of Radianse, said, “The situation at HUP is very much what we had in mind when we developed a healthcare-focused IPS. A hospital that can always find the equipment it already owns won’t need to repurchase or rent excess equipment, saving money that can be more effectively invested elsewhere. These savings also mean that a Radianse IPS delivers a fast return-on-investment.

“Once installed, a Radianse IPS can be used to locate any manufacturer’s device at any time, which is the only way to make a real impact on the asset shrinkage that’s costing healthcare millions annually.”