Adoption possibilities and use of RFID in Nigeria health sector

RFID technology has become one of the technologies that have gained popularity in different nations and industries in the global economy with impart on supply chain and logistics, education, production, security and protocol; hospitality and tourism; military and health. It has transcended identification and tracking with rudiment barcoding to become a first aid collaborative health gadget that has made health care delivery cum patients’ information transfer correct, faster and accessible through its sophisticated communication frequency device. RFID, even though at an infantile stage of adoption in virtually all industries in Nigeria, the tremendous benefits accruable to the country’s human capacity building and development through the RFID adoption in Health sector will last till the extinction or alternative. The research study has served to investigate the inherent complexities within the Nigeria health sector’s adoption perspective. It employed semi-structured interview method to find out the nature and causes of adoption of RFID in Nigeria health care delivery sector. The author carried out the research instruments on four hospitals (two private and two public or government managed hospitals). The research engaged itself to investigate the internal, external and technical dynamics of Nigeria health care service as a sector and how the formers are necessary and contributory to the adoption of RFID thereby eliciting the level and direction (positive or negative) which it is taking in the economy. It also tasked the research study to identify and better understand areas where RFID adoption will be more beneficial to the Nigeria health sector. The result showed that RFID adoption though assigned with low level of awareness; adoption capital recompense and infrastructural challenges in the Nigeria health sector in particular, also has high and great tendencies to thrive. The result of the second research question revealed that the Nigerian health care service delivery can harness the benefits of the IT solution system to function in its clientele servicing in forms like authentication and identification of personnel, patients’ data and blood verification; drug dispensary among others. However, among the varying importance of RFID technology, the most significantly identified in the research is the data solution service, which cuts through a wide range of interconnectivity between the primary health care giver and the secondary users and health administrators.

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