A wireless voice/data communication system in a large hospital

Computer systems, often called hospital information systems (HIS), have been installed in most large Japanese hospitals for administration of the basic medical information of patients, for making entries on medical charts, and for prescribing medication. In almost all cases, HIS have a server/client type structure, with the servers and client terminals connected with a LAN. For voice communication among the hospital staff, a landline telephone is often used. Fixed-line call systems (nurse call systems) are used for communication between patients and nurses. The potential demand for the introduction of wireless communication devices for data/voice communication into hospitals is high because of the promise of savings these technologies bring by improving patient service and labour efficiency. However, because of guidelines made to reduce problems that might be caused by electromagnetic interference (EMI) with medical electric devices and administrative fears about potential problems, the introduction of these systems has, until recently, been shelved in almost all cases. Because in recent years it has became possible to control the electromagnetic waves emitted by mobile communications apparatus and to protect against the possible occurrence of EMI, the number of hospitals introducing such wireless communication has grown. We report a case of a university hospital in which data and voice wireless communication have been safely and efficiently introduced