TONSILLECTOMY AND ALPHA THUNDER TAGS
So just this morning, I had to drag myself out of bed; my comfortable, lovely and relaxing bed at 3:30am. Not only did I have to wake up, I had to put pants on and leave the house completely. Why, you ask? I have a sister. I have a sister that just keeps getting Streptococcus. Her tonsils just can’t handle the everyday germs like you and I, so it was time to part ways. They had to go; and apparently I was the only one that could drive her. Ever heard of Uber? The one good thing, if there was one, was I got to talk again about how great Alpha Thunder Tags are.
You might be asking where the connection is there. How can my sister’s tonsillectomy have any relation to Alpha Thunder Tags? Working in the LP industry makes me feel like an old man that talks about the “good ole’ days’ every chance I get. Instead of the days of yore, I like to talk about ways to stop criminals. Criminals get hurt and have to go to the hospital too, you know!
I’m sitting in the little waiting room area and there is literally no one in the surgical wing at this hour. There are a few nurses at the floor station and the halls are dead silent. I kind of wanted a career change at that moment. I notice that the nurse and staff all do their charting electronically, on iPads. Very carelessly, they set them down and walk away. Anyone with a dishonest bone in their body could simply walk by, scoop it up and be on their merry way before anyone would ever notice. Hospitals just don’t think like an LP manager does, I guess. For me, tablet theft is a very real problem in my store and we work extraordinarily hard to prevent it.
Back to the surgery! The tonsils put up a valiant fight, but in the end the scalpel was too much of a challenger. In the recovery ward now, in a little room, waiting for my kid sister to wake up from the cocktail of sleepy time meds, a nurse comes in to check on her; using an iPad of course. I have no one else to talk to so I ask if there’s ever been a tablet theft. I then have to explain what I do for a living before she realizes I’m not really interested in stealing her iPad. Her answer didn’t surprise me. She tells me that a few have gone “missing” over time, but didn’t think that people in hospitals steal.
While you may have a great team of employees in a hospital and maybe employee theft isn’t a problem, the fact here is that a hospital is open to the public. Anyone can simply walk in the front doors, and walk the hallways late at night looking for a table to steal. If questioned, they can just say they are visiting a family member and got lost; there’s no way to verify this. Not only that, but criminals get hurt. Normal people who get hurt have thieves in their family that will come visit them. Patients may also be kleptomaniacs. Bet you never thought about that before!
To easily protect your hospital, or private practice from tablet theft, Alpha Thunder Tags are the easiest, most cost effective method to do so. The small tag can be applied to all your devices (and not just tablets, either) that would give an audible alert anytime they passed through an antenna (which are basically invisible). This simple tool will not only protect the investment in the hardware, but will also help bolster any software tools you’re using to protect patient data. If you’re looking for a way to secure your tablets, look no further than the rumble of Alpha Thunder Tags.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
So just this morning, I had to drag myself out of bed; my comfortable, lovely and relaxing bed at 3:30am. Not only did I have to wake up, I had to put pants on and leave the house completely. Why, you ask? I have a sister. I have a sister that just keeps getting Streptococcus. Her tonsils just can’t handle the everyday germs like you and I, so it was time to part ways. They had to go; and apparently I was the only one that could drive her. Ever heard of Uber? The one good thing, if there was one, was I got to talk again about how great Alpha Thunder Tags are.
You might be asking where the connection is there. How can my sister’s tonsillectomy have any relation to Alpha Thunder Tags? Working in the LP industry makes me feel like an old man that talks about the “good ole’ days’ every chance I get. Instead of the days of yore, I like to talk about ways to stop criminals. Criminals get hurt and have to go to the hospital too, you know!
I’m sitting in the little waiting room area and there is literally no one in the surgical wing at this hour. There are a few nurses at the floor station and the halls are dead silent. I kind of wanted a career change at that moment. I notice that the nurse and staff all do their charting electronically, on iPads. Very carelessly, they set them down and walk away. Anyone with a dishonest bone in their body could simply walk by, scoop it up and be on their merry way before anyone would ever notice. Hospitals just don’t think like an LP manager does, I guess. For me, tablet theft is a very real problem in my store and we work extraordinarily hard to prevent it.
Back to the surgery! The tonsils put up a valiant fight, but in the end the scalpel was too much of a challenger. In the recovery ward now, in a little room, waiting for my kid sister to wake up from the cocktail of sleepy time meds, a nurse comes in to check on her; using an iPad of course. I have no one else to talk to so I ask if there’s ever been a tablet theft. I then have to explain what I do for a living before she realizes I’m not really interested in stealing her iPad. Her answer didn’t surprise me. She tells me that a few have gone “missing” over time, but didn’t think that people in hospitals steal.
While you may have a great team of employees in a hospital and maybe employee theft isn’t a problem, the fact here is that a hospital is open to the public. Anyone can simply walk in the front doors, and walk the hallways late at night looking for a table to steal. If questioned, they can just say they are visiting a family member and got lost; there’s no way to verify this. Not only that, but criminals get hurt. Normal people who get hurt have thieves in their family that will come visit them. Patients may also be kleptomaniacs. Bet you never thought about that before!
To easily protect your hospital, or private practice from tablet theft, Alpha Thunder Tags are the easiest, most cost effective method to do so. The small tag can be applied to all your devices (and not just tablets, either) that would give an audible alert anytime they passed through an antenna (which are basically invisible). This simple tool will not only protect the investment in the hardware, but will also help bolster any software tools you’re using to protect patient data. If you’re looking for a way to secure your tablets, look no further than the rumble of Alpha Thunder Tags.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
I wasn't sure if it was stress, me getting older or perhaps something more serious going on, but for the last few months, I've been suffering from migraines on a recurrent basis. The straw that broke the camel's back came when I had to leave work in the middle of a large investigation because I just couldn't see straight. I had to see my doctor. I go in and he says that migraines can have several triggers. He can't find anything and recommend me to my eye doctor, gives me a script and tells me to come back in a week. Done. It seems like whether it's my dentist, doctor, or now eye doc, I always seem to bring up Alpha Thunder Tags to someone in the office.
I go ahead and make an appointment to rule out eye problems. I get to the office, check in and wait. As I'm waiting, I see the office staff all using tablets. There's not a desktop PC in the house. My name is called. I walk with the nurse who's using a tablet. She runs a few basic tests, records the info on the tablet. Doc comes in the room; you guessed it, uses a tablet. So while we're discussing which is better or worse, I ask the doc if he's ever considered that someone could steal his tablets. Since he doesn't work in the LP industry, he of course doesn't. Alas, another opportunity for me to talk about Alpha Thunder Tags.
Once I tell him what I actually do for a living, we talk for a bit about tablet theft. He's surprised to hear my point of view. He tells me that he even hired a tech firm to install the latest technology to keep his patient files confidential and impervious to outside hackers, but never really consider falling victim to a tablet theft. All that money spent to keep the data safe could easily be circumvented if a thief made off when a physical tablet.
Not only do you have to worry about a patient or a thief walking in stealing the tablet, but you also have to think about a dishonest employee. While no one wants to think they're employees would steal from them; unfortunately it happens. Often. The absolute best way to prevent tablet theft in your office is to utilize a physical security measure such as the Alpha Thunder Tag. It's a rather small investment that will provide an immediate return on investment in not only real dollars, but in protecting your practice and your patient.
Oh, by the way, it turns out, nothing was wrong with my eyes. I went back and saw my primary doc like he asked and after a few more tests, I found that my nasal cavities remain in a congested and filled state. One over-the- counter allergy drug later, and I no longer have migraines, I sleep better and my girlfriend says I don't snore anymore.
Imagine that.
For more information about Alpha Thunder Tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Alpha Thunder Tags-4 WC Blog 191
Checkpoint Classic N10-3
i-pad theft-3
Tablet theft – 3
Need a Prescription To Prevent Mobile Medical Device Theft? Use An Alpha Thunder Tag And Classic N10 Antenna.
The use of mobile technology in healthcare is becoming routine. Go into a hospital and laptop computers on carts are wheeled around from room to room as nurses assist patients and gather personal medical information. In a dentist office the staff are calling out patients from the tablet they are holding with the patient’s information at their fingertip. Go to a corner pharmacy for a nurse practitioner visit and the first thing to do is complete a patient profile on an i-pad device attached to the counter of a private both or table. Electronic storage of information is so much easier than the cumbersome task of filling out form after form of paperwork. The opportunities for dropping pages or losing a patient’s folder are less likely when the information is stored in a digital format. But Doctor’s offices aren’t the only ones that benefit from using mobile medical devices. Pharmacies are also finding that the same devices can help improve the delivery and accuracy of their services. One precaution that all medical providers must take however, is to protect against i-pad theft or tablet theft. Not only is the device itself an expense no one wants to replace, but the lost data is more of a concern since confidential patient information is at risk once a device is missing.
It is possible to protect against tablet theft or i-pad theft if an office will invest in two things, a Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna system for each point of exit to a building and Alpha Thunder Tags. The Classic N10 antenna is an electronic article surveillance (EAS) detection system that picks up radio frequency signals emitted from an EAS tag, such as Alpha Thunder Tags. When the tag is within a certain distance from the antenna, the antenna alarm activates and sounds loud enough that staff members can respond and recover an item being removed from the building. Occasionally a thief will drop an item when an alarm sounds, again offering an opportunity for recovery of stolen equipment.
The Thunder Tags are small enough that they can be applied to almost any mobile devices using an adhesive supplied by the manufacturer. Thunder Tags have a tamper alarm that will sound if someone attempts to remove it from a device without using the proper detachment tool. The 3-alarm Alpha Thunder Tags also have an internal alarm that sounds when an item protected with a tag is removed from a building through the EAS antennas. With the protection of the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna and the tags, mobile medical devices will be safe within the hospital or office environment.
Pharmacies can benefit with the introduction of mobile medical technology, just as other medical fields are doing. According to a report titled “Evaluating Mobile Medical Applications” by Conor Hanrahan, Timothy Dy Aungst and Sabrina Cole, from the web site www.ashp.org, one application being explored used the camera in mobile devices. The researchers state, “Another ongoing project includes utilizing the camera of a smart device to conduct pill identification” (pg6). While the pill or a picture of a pill should be no cause for privacy concern, what if a patient shares information through a mobile device because they have mixed up pills or cannot recall what a pill is? A patient’s personal information may be on record with the pharmacy and that information helps them determine the pill a client sends in a picture. Strict control of mobile devices is critical so this information is not compromised. The report also claims that, “Future research will investigate the utilization of mobile apps to improve patient health through diet and exercise trackers, and as ways to increase medication adherence.”
Increased pharmacy apps will continue to drive mobile device use in drugstores, pharmacies and other drug dispensaries. Maintaining client confidentiality and protecting the devices is extremely important to the facility and the patients. I-pad theft and tablet theft can be prevented if Checkpoint Classic N10 antennas are placed at entrances/exits and Alpha Thunder Tags are installed on every mobile medical device.
Need information on Alpha Thunder Tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
http://www.ashp.org/DocLibrary/Bookstore/For-Institutions/Mobile-Medical-Apps.pdf
The use of mobile technology in healthcare is becoming routine. Go into a hospital and laptop computers on carts are wheeled around from room to room as nurses assist patients and gather personal medical information. In a dentist office the staff are calling out patients from the tablet they are holding with the patient’s information at their fingertip. Go to a corner pharmacy for a nurse practitioner visit and the first thing to do is complete a patient profile on an i-pad device attached to the counter of a private both or table. Electronic storage of information is so much easier than the cumbersome task of filling out form after form of paperwork. The opportunities for dropping pages or losing a patient’s folder are less likely when the information is stored in a digital format. But Doctor’s offices aren’t the only ones that benefit from using mobile medical devices. Pharmacies are also finding that the same devices can help improve the delivery and accuracy of their services. One precaution that all medical providers must take however, is to protect against i-pad theft or tablet theft. Not only is the device itself an expense no one wants to replace, but the lost data is more of a concern since confidential patient information is at risk once a device is missing.
It is possible to protect against tablet theft or i-pad theft if an office will invest in two things, a Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna system for each point of exit to a building and Alpha Thunder Tags. The Classic N10 antenna is an electronic article surveillance (EAS) detection system that picks up radio frequency signals emitted from an EAS tag, such as Alpha Thunder Tags. When the tag is within a certain distance from the antenna, the antenna alarm activates and sounds loud enough that staff members can respond and recover an item being removed from the building. Occasionally a thief will drop an item when an alarm sounds, again offering an opportunity for recovery of stolen equipment.
The Thunder Tags are small enough that they can be applied to almost any mobile devices using an adhesive supplied by the manufacturer. Thunder Tags have a tamper alarm that will sound if someone attempts to remove it from a device without using the proper detachment tool. The 3-alarm Alpha Thunder Tags also have an internal alarm that sounds when an item protected with a tag is removed from a building through the EAS antennas. With the protection of the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna and the tags, mobile medical devices will be safe within the hospital or office environment.
Pharmacies can benefit with the introduction of mobile medical technology, just as other medical fields are doing. According to a report titled “Evaluating Mobile Medical Applications” by Conor Hanrahan, Timothy Dy Aungst and Sabrina Cole, from the web site www.ashp.org, one application being explored used the camera in mobile devices. The researchers state, “Another ongoing project includes utilizing the camera of a smart device to conduct pill identification” (pg6). While the pill or a picture of a pill should be no cause for privacy concern, what if a patient shares information through a mobile device because they have mixed up pills or cannot recall what a pill is? A patient’s personal information may be on record with the pharmacy and that information helps them determine the pill a client sends in a picture. Strict control of mobile devices is critical so this information is not compromised. The report also claims that, “Future research will investigate the utilization of mobile apps to improve patient health through diet and exercise trackers, and as ways to increase medication adherence.”
Increased pharmacy apps will continue to drive mobile device use in drugstores, pharmacies and other drug dispensaries. Maintaining client confidentiality and protecting the devices is extremely important to the facility and the patients. I-pad theft and tablet theft can be prevented if Checkpoint Classic N10 antennas are placed at entrances/exits and Alpha Thunder Tags are installed on every mobile medical device.
Need information on Alpha Thunder Tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Alpha Thunder Tags-5 WC blog 159
i-pad theft-3
i-pads Fill A Need In Pediatric Intensive Care Units; Protect Those Devices With Alpha Thunder Tags Part I
Imagine being the parent of a newborn baby and not being able to see your child because they are in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and being closely monitored by doctors and nurses. Some of these infants are in incubators hooked up to monitors and feeding tubes. Then there are the mothers who are occasionally unable to be moved from their rooms due to C-sections or difficult deliveries that keep them bedridden. These moms are not always able to go to the Pediatric ICU to visit their child(ren). There are now hospitals that provide i-pads to patients who may not be able to get see their baby right away due to circumstances beyond their control. These hospitals must take precautions to protect against i-pad theft or computer tablet theft. They can do so by using Alpha Thunder Tags on their mobile devices.
Alpha Thunder Tags can be attached to mobile medical devices and when used in conjunction with electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas, such as the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna, help to both deter and detect theft. The tag is designed to activate the alarm built into an EAS antenna when it is carried into the proximity of the antenna. The antenna emits a loud beeping noise and LED lights flash during an activation, drawing the attention of anyone in the area. When staff hear the noise, they respond to the door and can stop the person setting off the alarm and determine the cause of the alert. If the cause is due to a mobile device being removed from the building, employees have the opportunity to recover it. The Alpha Thunder Tag also has a built in alarm that will activate even if someone gets through the doors and into the street or parking lot.
Additionally, when attached to a mobile device, there is a tamper alarm that sets. Should a thief attempt an i-pad theft, by removing an Alpha Thunder Tag, the tamper alarm will sound a loud, piercing noise. Again, hospital staff can respond to the location and recover the device. The tag and the Checkpoint N10 antennas together provide a physical and visual deterrent which keep i-pads or computer tablets in hospitals and available to the patients who need them.
Where are i-pads being used to help moms and babies connect? One place that the connection is being made is at Cedar-Sinai Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. On their website, cedars-sinai.edu, in an article, “iPads Help New Moms Connect With Their Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit”, the story describes how some mothers are unable to see their newborns right away and this can cause anxiety and stress. They have called their program “Baby Time” and it allows the mother to see her newborn when she is in another area of the hospital and cannot get to her child. The hospital brings an i-pad to the mother and then an i-pad is used at the other end to allow the mother to see her baby and see how he/she is doing. The mother is able to see her baby and feel more at ease at the situation. One mother mentioned in the article said that “… the program meant feeling just a little closer to her baby girl and the comfort of being able to hear the physician explain her infant’s condition.”
In part two of this article we will look at other areas where similar use of i-pads and tablets are being used to bridge the divide when parents can’t visit their newborns. Suffice it to say, the thought of a possible i-pad theft from a program such as this is unconscionable, but the possibility exists. Alpha Thunder Tags can help prevent such a situation.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Imagine being the parent of a newborn baby and not being able to see your child because they are in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and being closely monitored by doctors and nurses. Some of these infants are in incubators hooked up to monitors and feeding tubes. Then there are the mothers who are occasionally unable to be moved from their rooms due to C-sections or difficult deliveries that keep them bedridden. These moms are not always able to go to the Pediatric ICU to visit their child(ren). There are now hospitals that provide i-pads to patients who may not be able to get see their baby right away due to circumstances beyond their control. These hospitals must take precautions to protect against i-pad theft or computer tablet theft. They can do so by using Alpha Thunder Tags on their mobile devices.
Alpha Thunder Tags can be attached to mobile medical devices and when used in conjunction with electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas, such as the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna, help to both deter and detect theft. The tag is designed to activate the alarm built into an EAS antenna when it is carried into the proximity of the antenna. The antenna emits a loud beeping noise and LED lights flash during an activation, drawing the attention of anyone in the area. When staff hear the noise, they respond to the door and can stop the person setting off the alarm and determine the cause of the alert. If the cause is due to a mobile device being removed from the building, employees have the opportunity to recover it. The Alpha Thunder Tag also has a built in alarm that will activate even if someone gets through the doors and into the street or parking lot.
Additionally, when attached to a mobile device, there is a tamper alarm that sets. Should a thief attempt an i-pad theft, by removing an Alpha Thunder Tag, the tamper alarm will sound a loud, piercing noise. Again, hospital staff can respond to the location and recover the device. The tag and the Checkpoint N10 antennas together provide a physical and visual deterrent which keep i-pads or computer tablets in hospitals and available to the patients who need them.
Where are i-pads being used to help moms and babies connect? One place that the connection is being made is at Cedar-Sinai Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. On their website, cedars-sinai.edu, in an article, “iPads Help New Moms Connect With Their Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit”, the story describes how some mothers are unable to see their newborns right away and this can cause anxiety and stress. They have called their program “Baby Time” and it allows the mother to see her newborn when she is in another area of the hospital and cannot get to her child. The hospital brings an i-pad to the mother and then an i-pad is used at the other end to allow the mother to see her baby and see how he/she is doing. The mother is able to see her baby and feel more at ease at the situation. One mother mentioned in the article said that “… the program meant feeling just a little closer to her baby girl and the comfort of being able to hear the physician explain her infant’s condition.”
In part two of this article we will look at other areas where similar use of i-pads and tablets are being used to bridge the divide when parents can’t visit their newborns. Suffice it to say, the thought of a possible i-pad theft from a program such as this is unconscionable, but the possibility exists. Alpha Thunder Tags can help prevent such a situation.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Alpha Thunder Tag-4 WC blog 155
Checkpoint Classic N10-3
i-pad theft-3
Medical i-pad Use For Veteran Outreach Grows; Keep i-pads Secure With Alpha Thunder Tags
As a military veteran myself and a concerned citizen who cares deeply for our combat veteran’s, I am very interested in the steps taken by our Veteran’s Administration hospitals to care for our wounded warriors. I believe these soldiers deserve the best possible care for treating both their physical wounds and their mental wounds. So, it was interesting for me find that V.A. hospitals are now using i-pads to help both physicians and V.A. social workers in assisting veterans. According to a July 22, 2014 story by Keith Gottschalk in pittsburgh.va.gov, the VA Pittsburgh Hospital received 600 i-pads that June. Some of the benefits for clinicians that were listed:
• Convenient access to real-time clinical information
• Mobile access to patient information throughout the medical center
• Easy access to medical tools at work, home and on the go
• Secure communication between patients and providers; and
• Improved access to patient-generated data
As the hospitals find the value of using such devices and increase their spending on them, there is a definite risk of i-pad theft or tablet theft. Making sure this does not happen should be a priority and using an Alpha Thunder Tag can decrease the chance of pilferage.
The Alpha Thunder Tag works with an electronic article surveillance antenna system. When an antenna, such as a Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna is set up at a door, if a tagged device is carried into radio frequency range, an alarm in the antenna is set off. The loud, sharp, distinctive noise alerts employees that a tagged item is being carried out. Staff can verify that the person carrying the device has the authority to do so, or they can recover it from someone who is trying to steal it. Concern about possible tampering with the tag is alleviated due to the tamper proof nature of the Alpha Thunder Tag. If someone were to try to remove the tag, the tag alarms and like the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna, staff can respond to the alarm and prevent a theft from occurring.
Is i-pad theft or tablet theft a concern for V.A. hospitals? It can be, just as it is for any other agency that incorporates the devices into their operations. One example, found on the website va.gov, a reported theft on 7/29/2015, involved an employee who took VA issued hardware from a government vehicle and transferred it to her own car at the end of her shift. She then stopped at a store on the way home and someone broke into her car stealing VA issued equipment including an i-pad, cell phone and car key. In an article posed on May 27, 2014 in Denverpost.com, two VA hospital laptop computers were stolen from a lab. My point is, mobile computing devices are a great addition to VA hospitals but do need to be secured.
I don’t want to lose sight of the benefits of mobile medical devices in VA hospitals. In another article in goerie.com, March 27, 2016, Gerry Weiss reported on a licensed social worker from the Erie Veterans Affairs Medical Center, who is meeting with combat veterans who are not comfortable around crowds or people they don’t know. Some of the veterans she is meeting with are homeless or living out of shelters. The story describes how the social worker uses a hospital i-pad to arrange meetings using Skype to arrange meetings between the veterans and behavioral health specialists. Such stories are encouraging, and demonstrate that even our homeless veterans have an opportunity to get assistance they might otherwise not receive. Computer tablets and i-pads are making these inroads possible.
Adding Checkpoint Classic N10 antennas at hospital entrances and placing an Alpha Thunder Tag on all medical mobile devices, can prevent i-pad theft at V.A. hospitals as well as other medical facilities. Preventing thieves from stealing property that adds so much richness to the treatment of patients must be a priority. Stealing anything that hinders a patient’s care should make us angry. Stealing devices that help our veterans is unconscionable.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
As a military veteran myself and a concerned citizen who cares deeply for our combat veteran’s, I am very interested in the steps taken by our Veteran’s Administration hospitals to care for our wounded warriors. I believe these soldiers deserve the best possible care for treating both their physical wounds and their mental wounds. So, it was interesting for me find that V.A. hospitals are now using i-pads to help both physicians and V.A. social workers in assisting veterans. According to a July 22, 2014 story by Keith Gottschalk in pittsburgh.va.gov, the VA Pittsburgh Hospital received 600 i-pads that June. Some of the benefits for clinicians that were listed:
• Convenient access to real-time clinical information
• Mobile access to patient information throughout the medical center
• Easy access to medical tools at work, home and on the go
• Secure communication between patients and providers; and
• Improved access to patient-generated data
As the hospitals find the value of using such devices and increase their spending on them, there is a definite risk of i-pad theft or tablet theft. Making sure this does not happen should be a priority and using an Alpha Thunder Tag can decrease the chance of pilferage.
The Alpha Thunder Tag works with an electronic article surveillance antenna system. When an antenna, such as a Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna is set up at a door, if a tagged device is carried into radio frequency range, an alarm in the antenna is set off. The loud, sharp, distinctive noise alerts employees that a tagged item is being carried out. Staff can verify that the person carrying the device has the authority to do so, or they can recover it from someone who is trying to steal it. Concern about possible tampering with the tag is alleviated due to the tamper proof nature of the Alpha Thunder Tag. If someone were to try to remove the tag, the tag alarms and like the Checkpoint Classic N10 antenna, staff can respond to the alarm and prevent a theft from occurring.
Is i-pad theft or tablet theft a concern for V.A. hospitals? It can be, just as it is for any other agency that incorporates the devices into their operations. One example, found on the website va.gov, a reported theft on 7/29/2015, involved an employee who took VA issued hardware from a government vehicle and transferred it to her own car at the end of her shift. She then stopped at a store on the way home and someone broke into her car stealing VA issued equipment including an i-pad, cell phone and car key. In an article posed on May 27, 2014 in Denverpost.com, two VA hospital laptop computers were stolen from a lab. My point is, mobile computing devices are a great addition to VA hospitals but do need to be secured.
I don’t want to lose sight of the benefits of mobile medical devices in VA hospitals. In another article in goerie.com, March 27, 2016, Gerry Weiss reported on a licensed social worker from the Erie Veterans Affairs Medical Center, who is meeting with combat veterans who are not comfortable around crowds or people they don’t know. Some of the veterans she is meeting with are homeless or living out of shelters.The story describes how the social worker uses a hospital i-pad to arrange meetings using Skype to arrange meetings between the veterans and behavioral health specialists. Such stories are encouraging, and demonstrate that even our homeless veterans have an opportunity to get assistance they might otherwise not receive. Computer tablets and i-pads are making these inroads possible.
Adding Checkpoint Classic N10 antennas at hospital entrances and placing an Alpha Thunder Tag on all medical mobile devices, can prevent i-pad theft at V.A. hospitals as well as other medical facilities. Preventing thieves from stealing property that adds so much richness to the treatment of patients must be a priority. Stealing anything that hinders a patient’s care should make us angry. Stealing devices that help our veterans is unconscionable.
Get more information on Alpha Thunder Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
