The Association of Hospitals (AOH), which represents the city’s private hospitals, is contemplating attaching radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to babies to track their movements in hospital premises.
Radio frequency tags for babies and biometric screening of hospital visitors are two measures being considered by private and municipal hospitals in Mumbai to prevent baby thefts.
The Association of Hospitals (AOH), which represents the city’s private hospitals, is contemplating attaching radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to babies to track their movements in hospital premises.
On Monday, a two-month-old baby was stolen from a civic-run health centre in Govandi in Mumbai. The incident took place a month after a two-month-old baby was stolen by a burqa-clad person from the VN Desai municipal hospital in Santa Cruz.
Last year, the theft of Mohini Nerurkar’s child from the BMC-run Sion hospital made headlines. The baby has not been traced as yet.
Major General (retired) Vijay Krishna, CEO of Breach Candy hospital and AOH president, said the issue of newborns being stolen from hospitals was discussed at a meeting of the AOH managing committee two weeks ago.
“A company gave us a presentation on RFID technology. It was impressive, but we have not yet given the final nod for the installation of the system. The idea is at the planning stage. We are looking at the cost and other aspects. Our hospitals already have an elaborate security system to ensure such incidents don’t take place,” Krishna said.
A top hospital in Pune has already installed the system. “It is a very good idea, but it seems to be expensive. Our baby nursing station has a foolproof security system and we don’t allow any visitors, except authorised hospital employees. However, other hospitals may want to install the RFID system,” said Dr (Col) Manesh Masand, CEO of Jaslok hospital.
Dr Sanjay Oak, dean of the civic-run KEM hospital in Parel in central Mumbai, said staff alone cannot be blamed for baby thefts. “Parents must also be alert. We will install a biometric system to screen visitors at the Sion and Bhabha hospitals. The facility will be set up at all civic run hospitals later,” he said.
Other hospitals too have tightened security. “We have a foolproof system in our maternity ward. Also, before a mother and her baby are discharged from the hospital, we have a three-tier check system. Doctors, nurses and security staff are involved in it. There are also CCTV cameras in the ward and OPDs,” Dr TP Lahane, dean of the Sir JJ group of hospitals, told DNA.
Decoding RFID
Radio frequency identification (RFID) is a technology that uses communication via electromagnetic waves to exchange data between a terminal and an object such as a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification and tracking. Some tags can be read from several metres away and beyond the line of sight of the reader.
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