I Hate Dialysis Message Board
Dialysis Discussion => Dialysis: News Articles => Topic started by: okarol on August 16, 2007, 12:04:43 AM
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Healthcare IT News
Microchips to be implanted in dialysis patients
By Molly Merrill, Editorial Assistant
08/16/07
DELRAY BEACH, FL – The Independent Dialysis Foundation (IDF), a not-for-profit organization affiliated with the University of Maryland, says it will partner with the VeriChip Corp. , a provider of RFID systems, to examine the use of implantable RFID microchips in dialysis patients.
“Through our partnership with Independent Dialysis Foundation, dialysis patients can receive the VeriMed implantable microchip and the peace of mind that comes with knowing that their medical history will be available in an emergency – regardless of their ability to communicate,” said VeriChip CEO Scott R. Silverman. “We believe patients receiving dialysis, who tend to present with various co-morbidities and medications, and are more frequently admitted to emergency departments, are an important audience to benefit from the VeriMed Patient Identification System.
IDF is Maryland’s largest independent dialysis center operator. It operates six freestanding facilities, one in a nursing home (Lion’s Manor Center), two certified hospital facilities (Deaton Center and University at MD Hospital) and inpatient services in five hospitals.
“IDF has always embraced the latest technology as a means to provide our patients the best possible care,” said John Sadler, MD, CEO and founder of the foundation. “Improving access to dialysis patients’ medical information by healthcare providers at critical times, such as in emergency rooms, through devices such as VeriMed, has the potential to make a significant impact.”
Five hundred of IDF’s patients and their families will be provided with access to the microchip for one year. At the end of this time, the microchip will be assessed by patients according to acceptance rates, rate of complications, patient interviews and the utility of the information it provided at various points of care.
http://www.healthcareitnews.com/story.cms?id=7610
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What Next a Barcode on our Arm, aaw that's right we already have one of those, our fistula scar ! :sarcasm;
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I like that idea.... someday my parents wont be around to say my history when I am unable... and nobody knows my history better than my parents besides myself.... :thumbup;
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I agree with Tamara, it makes me nervous...what else could they use it for?
Besides that, there are other more practical concerns - first, my information changes almost every time I go to the doctor, so I've got to consider how difficult would it be to change what's on the chip? Second, I carry a pocket PC with me and have all my information on that, anyway. If you don't want to get that technical, why not just carry an index card in your wallet with all your information? That's the first place emergency medical personnel look for identification, anyway. And there's always a Med-Alert bracelet!
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Not everyone will like the idea.. that's why there "optional", not mandatory... I still think they are a great idea...
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Big brother is watching you!
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I think it's unlikely that most ER's are going to have the readers needed to scan the chips any time soon. So it's not like it's going to be much help anyhow, even if the staff at the ER think to look for one.
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Big brother is watching you!
Privacy advocates say they're concerned these chips could monitor or track people, medical records could be abused, and people would be unable to remove the chip by themselves if they wanted to.
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If my kitty can have a microchip, i guess i can too, i think it's a pretty good idea (to a point) :P
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Big brother is watching you!
I hope Will is watching me. (Guess you have to be a Big Brother fan to get that.)
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I started to think more about this, just what every dialysis patient needs :sarcasm; that are being worked up for a transplant. Something extra foreign in there body, bringing the risk of infection.
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Instead of embedding a foreign object into your body, why not just do a fingerprint scan that acts as a security key to your information on a database available on the internet? Updating the database would also be much easier than updating a chip in your arm.
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Something extra foreign in there body, bringing the risk of infection.
or raising our PRA even more...(I know, it's mechanical, not likely to do that, but still...)