NHS told to barcode patients

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Bar coding has been recommended for use throughout the National Health Service (NHS) by the Minister of State for Quality at the Department of Health.

Lord Hunt has recommended, in a report released today, that both the NHS and health-related industry use auto-identification and data capture technologies technology such as bar coding and radio frequency identification (RFID).

"Patient safety is my top priority and this document sets out a clear case for the use of auto-identification and data capture (AIDC) technology by industry and the NHS in order to save lives, reduce mistakes and improve efficiency," Lord Hunt said while on a visit to Birmingham Heartlands NHS Trust, which already uses the technology.

The automated system, which is already in use at some UK trusts, will help the NHS track patients, equipment and drugs. A bar-coded wristband can help identify patients without delay - such errors currently cost an estimated £2 billion a year in extra bed days - while coded instruments can help track when a tool was sterilised.

Many pharmaceuticals already use bar codes on their products, but integrating with the NHS means old or faulty batches can be prevented from entering circulation and dosage can be linked directly to patient records.

David Morgan is a consultant surgeon at the Heart of England NHS trust, which has been using a RFID wristband tagging system for the past two yeas. "Since using the system, the staff have been able to spend more time with the patients due to less paper work and patient safety has greatly increased. In fact, we have not had a single mistake whilst using the system," said Morgan. "Patients feel more confident as we are taking safety to a higher level and some patients have even emailed the hospital to ask if they could change hospitals as they have heard about the safety of the tagging system."

He added: "The accuracy of coding has now increased to almost 100 per cent as the coding is done by the operating surgeon on his PDA at the time of surgery. The staff find the digital devices easy to use thus saving time."

The NHS will follow standards set by GS1 UK - which provides a unique numbering system, widely in use across pharmaceutical, retail and supply chain sectors. "Auto-identification is not a new technology - we've all been used to bar codes in supermarkets for years. But to reap the benefits in healthcare everyone needs to work to agreed standards," said Lord Hunt.

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