Researchers at Toronto Rehab have developed a system that can detect whether hospital workers have washed their FILTHY HANDS. The match-box sized system hangs around the worker's neck, and beeps if infra-red detectors suspended over patient beds whether hands are dirty. It knows this because it monitors where workers have been since they last washed up.
7:20 AM * PERMALINK * 6 comments
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Comments:
This is actually a pretty useful idea. The best place to go to catch a deadly disease is a hospital. And, because more people die, each month, from infections caught in hospitals, than died in the World Trade Center attack, this could save a lot of lives.
The leading cause of death in the US is automobile accidents. It would be more useful if we put black boxes into cars to be able to properly monitor people's speed and driving habits. Since this affects everyone's privacy it would never take off, people who aren't healthcare workers love the idea of ensuring hospital workers wash their hands every 30 seconds but I wonder how many would be OK with bosses being able to tap into their webcams or installing keystroke monitors on their PCs...
Not to be an annoying reader, but do you mean "hangs" in this sentence -- "The match-box sized system hands around the worker's neck[...]"?
Very good idea.
Yes. "Hangs." I've fixed it. Thank you.
Mike Elgan
Well, time after time in study after study it has been found that hospital viruses are often transmitted because hospital staff don't wash their hands or don't wash them properly. Much as they may prefer not to be monitored, there's an easy way to end the monitoring...
Plenty of occupations require their staff to be monitored. And those are jobs where someone's life is not hanging in the balance.
Headline should have been "Big Brother is Washing You" : )
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