New research from ABI indicates the uptake of Wi-Fi within healthcare has spiked 60 percent over the past 12 months in both wireless LAN and Wi-Fi RTLS deployments. Better yet, the research suggests this trend may continue with high double-digit growth, at least for the medium term. Read »

SevenHills Hospital is standardizing on the Ruckus ZoneFlex 802.11n Smart WLAN system across its sprawling 17-acre campus in the heart of Mumbai, India. The technology is designed to leverage intelligent antenna arrays and dynamic beamforming technologies to automatically form and direct wireless transmissions over performing signal paths, away from interference. Read »

What do you get when you blend an aging population, a nursing shortage, a seemingly endless supply of taxpayer dollars, and an FCC plan that claims remote monitoring has the potential to save $200 billion over the next 15 to 25 years? A slew of “connected healthcare” companies eager to differentiate their offerings. Read »

All technology develops within a cultural milieu (which is French for “stew pot of vested interests”). The continua of wireless spectrum is interwoven with the backbone, so mentioning the FCC decision is appropriate. The discussions regarding net neutrality, fee for service, etc. continue to be hashed out in the political and judicial processes. However, Google's PR foray into broadband produced a spontaneous response in Communities United for Broadband. This got me thinking. Read »

Much of the buzz coming out of CTIA in Vegas this week stems from Sprint’s push to promote its mushrooming 4G wireless network. While the company’s not alone in its pursuit of 4G or LTE broadband, it is ahead of the pack. Healthcare providers should be paying attention, since the jump to significantly faster speeds will eventually improve their ability to remotely monitor patients. Read »

My subjective take on HIMSS10 is that the general consensus of attendees thought it was a great success (and personally, I want to thank those who allowed me to be involved with the educational outreach in the areas of medical banking and social media). Read »

A new sleep apnea device—the brainchild of Royal Philips Electronics and Cinterion Wireless Modules—has won the Best Embedded End-to-End Service Award, part of the GSMA's Embedded Mobile Competition. By leveraging Cinterion’s cellular machine-to-machine communication modules, the M2M solution joins mobility and reliable two-way wireless communications with advancements in sleep apnea therapy to help patients and their healthcare providers, who are faced with meeting rigorous new reporting standards. Read »

Telecom spending in healthcare is expected to increase 44 percent over next three years, from $8.6 billion to $12.4 billion. With wireless applications likely to represent two-thirds of that jump, it's not surprising that HIMSS10 would draw out the wireless industry honchos to bang the drum in support of mobile HIT. Although much of what they had to say you've heard before, it's always worth getting their take on the future of the mobile point of care. Read »

An Irish company, with offices in the U.S., Taiwan, Mexico and South Africa, has rolled out what's being touted as the first flexible circuit loop antenna, which promises over 40 percent efficiency in healthcare monitoring devices. Taoglas, which designs and manufactures reduced size VHF and UHF antennas for satellite, cellular, Wi-Fi, and multi-band markets, says its new FLA.01 antenna is a penta-band cellular antenna that is embedded inside medical devices. The buzz is that it should help medical device designers ensure that their devices achieve reliable, consistent wireless connections for transmitting patient data and meeting healthcare industry tests, such as Specific Absorption Rates (SAR) and PTCRB. Read »

With the right mix of advanced sensor technology, wireless communications and IT, diagnosing patients on the go--and monitoring patients with chronic diseases--is about to get a whole lot easier. That was the message coming out of TEDMED last week, where experts such as Eric Topol, cardiologist, director of the San Diego-based Scripps Translational Science Institute, and CMO of the West Wireless Health Institute, were predicting a wave of innovation that is expected to render obsolete numerous standard medical tools and instruments. Read »