Leveraging on RFID-IoT Technologies and Simulation to Design and Develop a Smart Shelf for Managing Low Value Medical Supplies

In this collaborative research project between one of the largest hospitals in the province of Quebec and university researchers, we are exploring the use of Radio Frequency Identification-Internet of things (RFID-IoT) technologies to improve the management of medical supplies in point of care units. While most of the research on RFID-IoT in the healthcare sector focuses on mobile device management and patient monitoring, this research contributes to our understanding of the potential of RFID-IoT technologies to improve (internal) hospital's logistics processes for low value medical supplies associated with patient care activities. The first objective is to contribute to the development of a "smart" shelf prototype that will combine different technologies including passive RFID technology and indicative LED. Since testing realistic impacts of such solutions on operational performance is not easy, the second objective is to use a hybrid simulation approach to evaluate the impact of an loT 2bin Kanban "smart" shelf replenishment system for medical supplies that can be used in a hospital nursing unit. The simulation approach facilitates the selection of the "best" replenishment system. The originality of this project lies (a) in the open innovation approach which is of great value in the healthcare context (b) in the combination of physical prototyping of an RFID-IoT smart shelf and simulation, which uses real operations data to explore the impact of the solution on business and operational processes.