RF IDeas will be promoting its WaveID cards at HIMSS13 this week. The company’s goal is to reinforce the ways in which smart cards can provide security within medical facilities.
Smart cards store embedded integrated circuit chips beneath a gold-plated contact plate. The chip works like a minicomputer, allowing for secure access to data and applications, as well as allowing for secure data exchange between readers and other systems.
In September 2012, the Smart Card Alliance issued a publication outlining the ways that smart card technology could benefit both patients and healthcare providers.
For example, patient smart cards can either store patient data directly on the card or link to a cloud-based healthcare information system.
With one scan of a smart card at the point-of-care, providers can know a patient’s medical history, including past surgeries, implanted devices, medication allergies and current prescriptions. Providers can also access not only insurance information, but also payment information if the patient stores credit or debit card data on the smart card.
Smart cards can also limit access to patient data stored onsite or online.
The Smart Card Alliance suggests a threefold identification system, including a PIN number, a smart card and a biometric readout. In other words, something a staff member knows, something the staff members has and something the staff member is.
By nature, smart cards are manufactured to prevent tampering. They come equipped with built-in metal layers, sensors that can detect thermal and UV light attacks, along with circuitry that thwarts differential power analysis.
Smart cards are manufactured around the ISO/IEC 7816 and ISO/IEC 14443 standards. These standards enable smart cards to be interoperable.
The Smart Card Alliance estimates that over 140 million smart cards have been deployed in the healthcare industry. However, the alliance acknowledges that projects like electronic medical records (EMR) often take priority over smart card implementation in many hospitals.
Once EMRs are implemented, however, data security becomes paramount. Companies like RF IDeas are hoping to cash in on the opportunity.
Edited by
Braden Becker
