An SXSW 2013 Accelerator Company, startup IntelligentM has created a wristband that reads RFID tags on hand-washing and sanitizing stations. Its accelerometer can detect how much time someone spends scrubbing their hands, and the wristband vibrates once if they’ve done a good job or three times if not, reports MIT Technology Review.
Plus at the end of staff shifts, hospital epidemiologists can collect data from the bracelet’s microUSB connection for review.
The report cites that some 100,000 people a year in the US alone die because of infections that arise from hospital visits, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What’s worse is that a lot of these infections occur due to unwashed hands of healthcare workers. Studies have found that hospital workers only meet proper hand-washing standards about half of the time.
Source: http://www.technologyreview.com/news/512471/are-your-doctors-hands-clean-this-wristband-knows
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