Artificial intelligence used for videogames has been used to monitor and track patients in a project unveiled by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) yesterday.

Pinata’s portable Wi-Fi device provides a link to both medical staff and loved ones

The technology is seen as particularly useful for patients prone to memory loss and disorientation.

The Pervasive Nursing and Doctoral Assistant (Pinata) was developed by the Department of Intelligent Computer Systems at the University of Malta. It combines wireless technology with cameras and small, adhesive patches that transmit information via small antenna, known as RFIDs.

The project, which cost some €125,000, was funded by the MCST’s Research and Innovation fund and was developed over five years.

A pilot test carried out at St James Hospital in Sliema was described a “triumph” by project coordinator Alexiei Dingli.

Dr Dingli said the Pinata system monitors patients through a series of small digital cameras currently used in the popular Xbox videogame console.

The patient is also fitted with a removable RFID patch resembling a plaster, which alerts medical staff to their whereabouts and physical condition.

“Pinata’s portable Wi-Fi device provides patients with a link to both medical staff and loved ones.”

It would provide staff with real-time information to minimise the risk of injury that, he claimed, often occurred due to lack of supervision.

Dr Dingli raised some eyebrows when he said the research team had considered incorporating RFID technology into some types of medication, which could help medical staff realise if patients had been given the wrong drugs.

The main aim of the technology is to create a low-cost solution to patient monitoring. MCST is currently accepting offers from the private sector for the technology and hopes to see the system implemented in Maltese hospitals in the near future.