The Commission has decided to study the options for using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology in healthcare, with applications ranging from the identification of patients in hospitals to tagging pharmaceutical products.

The Commission recently published a call for tenders for a study on requirements and options for actions in Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology in healthcare.

The main objective of the study is to assess the expected features of RFID applications in the healthcare market and to build future scenarios in the field. It is also set to identify possible obstacles and needs for policy actions or specific research activities on the subject.

In healthcare, RFID is used primarily for tagging pharmaceuticals. In hospitals, RFID systems are used, for example, to identify patients and to permit relevant hospital staff to access medical records. The systems are said to save lives, prevent errors, save costs and increase security.

Results of a recent Commission consultation on RFID show privacy, health and environmental risks as the main stakeholder concerns with regard the use of this technology. As to the use of RFID-based solutions in healthcare, 45% said they were positive about the technology while 40% said that they had a negative view.

The Commission has also recently launched a procedure to study the economic aspects of eHealth in general and of economic impact of interoperable electronic health records and ePrescription in particular.

- Our Bureau, Mumbai