Organized under the auspices of The RFID Educational Foundation, the RFID in Healthcare Consortium recently formed to promote the understanding of, and where appropriate, the adoption of radio-frequency identification technology for the benefit of the healthcare community. Harry Pappas, CEO and founder of the RFID Educational Foundation, says the Consortium includes a steering committee of 10 people, representing academia, medical devices/instruments, hospitals, RFID representatives, medical doctors, and systems integrators. The organization is seeking one or two members from the packaging community. A two-day educational conference is in the planning stages for early next year.
"The global healthcare industry needs a forum for peer development, education of stakeholders, reviews of RFID technology, of regulatory guidelines and standards that proactively ensure safe implementation of this technology for healthcare institutions," says Paul Rudolf, formerly with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and a participant in the forming of the Consortium. For more information, contact Pappas at 610/357-0990, or e-mail him.
