Begin forwarded message:
From: "Robert J. Berger" <rberger@ibd.com>
Date: May 13, 2008 3:55:24 PM EDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>, David Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: Wireless patient devices at risk from proposed Internet use
Wireless patient devices at risk from proposed Internet use
By DIBYA SARKAR Associated Press Writer
http://www.salon.com/wires/ap/scitech/2008/05/13/D90KUIJ80_tv_vs_internet_medical_devices/print.html
May 13th, 2008 | WASHINGTON -- Losing the audio feed during "Monday
Night Football" may seem like a crisis for some sports fan, but it's
nothing compared to losing the signal that monitors a critically ill
hospital patient.
The technical glitches share a potential source: the proposed use of
unoccupied TV airwaves for high-speed Internet service across the
country.
While television networks and wireless microphone users have been
fighting the idea, the medical community is also sounding the alarm
over possible interference from unlicensed portable gizmos operating
in a nearby spectrum. The spectrum's valuable wireless real estate has
attracted technology companies and consumer advocates who say it
shouldn't remain vacant.
Hospitals and medical device makers say using empty channels for
unlicensed uses is a matter of life and death, not just a source of
static for entertainment outlets. It could disrupt the monitoring of
patients' heart rates, blood oxygen levels and other vital signs at
medical facilities.
"If they stop functioning for a period of time, you don't know the
patient's physiological condition. This is patient care at its most
basic level," says Dale Woodin, executive director of the American
Society of Healthcare Engineering, an arm of the American Hospital
Association.
Medical device maker GE Healthcare, a unit of General Electric Co.,
has also weighed in, asking the Federal Communications Commission to
proceed carefully in its decision to permit broadband use through
those idle channels, commonly known as "white spaces."
In an FCC filing last week, the company requested stricter standards
to protect wireless patient-monitoring equipment, such as heart, blood
pressure and respiration devices, from being overwhelmed by other
equipment operating in nearby channels.
The FCC is conducting tests to find an efficient and interference-free
way to use the spectrum for broadband, but several trial devices have
either broken down or failed. A spokesman said some additional lab
tests may be needed, but the agency will start field testing soon.
Those white spaces, prized for their ability to travel long distances
and go through walls, will be made available when the nation makes a
transition to digital TV next February. After the switch, broadcasters
will occupy channels 2 through 51, but almost half those channels in
some cities will remain fallow, especially in rural areas where there
are fewer broadcasters.
Technology companies, including Google Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Dell
Inc., have said low-powered, unlicensed and portable devices such as
cell phones, laptops and BlackBerrys, can operate safely in the empty
spectrum without harming other signals. They say it will provide
affordable high-speed Internet and spur innovation.
But its potential effect on everything from baseball calls to banjo
picking has attracted increasingly loud and powerful opponents.
Television broadcasters, telecom carriers and wireless microphone
makers and users, including Major League Baseball and the Grand Ole
Opry, have rejected several proposals from the tech coalition.
"The white spaces proposals being considered by the FCC could turn
'Music City' into a silent city unless they get it right," Steve
Gibson, music director and producer of broadcast audio for the Grand
Ole Opry, said in a statement Tuesday. The country music venue is
operated by Nashville, Tenn.-based Gaylord Entertainment Co.
Unlike the broadcasters and wireless mic users, GE Healthcare and ASHE
say they're not against the technology coalition's proposal, but want
tougher technical standards implemented to lessen any potential risks.
They've have had several discussions with the FCC and technology
companies to find a compromise.
Attorney Scott Blake Harris, who represents several technology
companies, said Tuesday the coalition has agreed to the substance of
GE Healthcare's proposal.
"There are no insurmountable technical hurdles here," he added.
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