GE
Healthcare (NYSE: GE) and Royal
Philips Electronics (AEX: PHI, NYSE: PHG) applaud the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) today for its action allocating
protected spectrum for wireless medical devices, called Medical Body
Area Networks (MBANs), which could revolutionize the way patients are
monitored and help eliminate the restrictive cables that tether patients
to hospital beds. MBANs—small, wearable wireless sensors that capture
patient vital signs—could help extend care anywhere throughout the
hospital or even remotely in the home. By providing access to spectrum
that is free of transmissions from WiFi and other ubiquitous
high-powered consumer devices, the FCC's ruling is a key enabler for
MBANs.
Today, nearly all patient monitors are connected to patients via cables.
By eliminating these wires, MBANs could help patients be more mobile,
which may contribute to improved patient outcomes and recovery, and
enhance their overall comfort. Small, wearable sensors could collect
real-time clinical information such as temperature and respiratory
function, and aggregate it at a nearby device for local processing and
forwarding to centralized displays and electronic medical records.
"MBANs represent the next evolution in monitoring a patient's health
status," said Dr. Richard Katz, Director, Division of Cardiology,
Bloedorn Professor of Medicine, The George Washington University
Hospital. "These wireless innovations can enhance patient safety by
giving caregivers the ability to monitor many clinical measurements,
wherever the patient is located."
MBANs could offer the following, additional benefits in the hospital:
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Early intervention: Clinicians can catch issues before
the patient's condition becomes critical, thus improving patient
outcomes while avoiding the need for acute interventional measures.
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Ease of patient transport: There will no longer be a
need to disconnect and reconnect wires prior to transporting a patient.
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Infection control: By limiting the wires, MBANs could
help reduce the risk of infection and the need for cleaning procedures.
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Flexibility: Caregivers will be able to quickly add or
remove sensors for different physiological parameters as medical
conditions warrant.
In the current healthcare system, patients are primarily monitored in
acute and critical-care departments. MBANs are low-cost wearable sensors
that could allow clinicians to view vital signs for a patient wherever
they are—from hospitals to emergency vehicles to the home.