Cisco Demonstrates Belgian Victim Tracking and Tracing System in University Hospital Antwerp

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) has showcased a new solution designed
to simplify the registration and identification of casualties affected
in a disaster situation. The solution, co-developed with AeroScout
(www.aeroscout.com), CITS (www.citsolutions.be) and Intermec
(www.intermec.be), Orion Health (http://www.orionhealth.com/) called
BeViTTS (Belgian Victim Tracking and Tracing System), allows for the
rapid exchange and automatic processing of data collected by emergency
workers at the scene of a disaster. The critical information is
collected in real time using Cisco's mobile and wireless network
technology, and stored and made available to the emergency workers via
a web-based portal, thus eliminating the loss of precious time.

The crisis management team can consult the personal information
contained in the database remotely from the crisis centre and
immediately implement the required measures. Hospitals and other
crisis support centres also have access to the medical information
stored in the database, thus allowing them to prepare for the arrival
and subsequent treatment of the disaster victims.

Life-saving technology

BeViTTS was showcased at the University Hospital in Antwerp by
Prof. Dr. Luc Beaucourt, head of the hospital's emergency department
and medical assistance director of the provincial disaster plan. "In
the event of a disaster, the efficient collection and rapid forwarding
of clear, accurate information to the right persons or authorities is
literally a matter of life and death," says Dr. Beaucourt. "The first
hour after a trauma, which is generally known in the industry as the
'Golden Hour,' is crucial in defining the path of the subsequent
treatment process. For this reason, it is vital that the victims of a
disaster, particularly the seriously injured, receive the right
treatment quickly. For that reason, a quick, correct identification
and registration procedure, preferably at the scene of the disaster
itself, is indispensable. The closest emergency services and hospitals
with the required capacity and medical provisions also have to be
given adequate warning and accurate information. Not to mention the
family of the victims and the residents in the vicinity of the
disaster."

"Today, the gathering of information and communication between
emergency services at the scene often leaves a great deal to be
desired," states Cisco's John Baekelmans, Business Development
Manager, who is himself a volunteer lieutenant with the local fire
department in Kontich. "The limited or non-automated, manual approach
to disaster management and the continued reliance upon paper
correspondence over electronic data processing result in costly
delays. Furthermore, the risk of human error is significantly
increased, sometimes with fatal consequences. With today's short yet
nonetheless true-to-life demonstration, we hope to show that there is
another way. The technical tools needed to improve the efficiency of
disaster relief, and thus save valuable human lives, are already
available and have already even been implemented in other countries."

Inspiration from the Netherlands

The core of the Belgian Victim Tracking and Tracing System is the
Cisco 3200 Series Wireless and Mobile Router, also called the Mobile
Access Router (MAR). This is a compact, robust and extremely flexible
device that is suitable for creating a wireless network connection in
and around vehicles. The device can support many different network
connections, both fixed and wireless, and can automatically switch
from one to the other. If there are several available connections, the
intelligent router automatically chooses the connection that
guarantees most bandwidth. More details on the Cisco 3200 Series
Wireless and Mobile Router can be found at:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/routers/ps272/index.html.

Cisco Systems developed the Victim Tracking and Tracing System in
close co-operation with other technology providers. AeroScout provides
the active WiFi standards-based active RFID tags, and Choke Point
Exciters for detecting entry and exit from hospitals, CITS the back
end and portal infrastructure, Orion Health is the vendor of the
Portal and integration software CITS used, as a platform, to develop
the BeViTTS Portal and Intermec the system's wireless RFID reader. The
most important source of inspiration was the Dutch Victim Tracking and
Tracing System, for which Cisco also provided the technology. The
system, which has been thoroughly tested in the Netherlands over the
past few years, is now officially being put into practice over there.
More information about this Dutch counterpart of BeViTTS can be found
at: http://www.cisco.com/web/strategy/docs/gov/Cisco_SVS.pdf.

While the Dutch emergency services still utilise the traditional
bar code for registering and locating victims, the Belgian consortium
has opted for the newer RFID technology. Radio Frequency
Identification (RFID) allows objects, animals or people to be
identified using radio waves. The AeroScout tags utilise the Cisco
wireless network for the hospital and eliminate the need for a
dedicated location network and provide a scalable and easy to manage
solution. The technology is especially suitable for environments or
situations in which data collection is extremely difficult and
unpredictable and where there can be no guarantee that a barcode will
remain clearly visible.

European dimension

The Belgian Victim Tracking and Tracing System not only has a
Dutch equivalent. Tests are also currently being conducted in Germany
incorporating GPS and GPRS technology for the registration and
tracking of disaster victims. The information obtained via the GPS
tracking system is available in real time for transmission to the back
end via GPRS messages sent via the existing network.

John Baekelmans, Cisco Systems expects that all these inherently
related initiatives with a national and thus relatively limited
character, will form the basis for a more comprehensive project of
European dimensions. "Such a project could lead, in a relatively short
period of time, to the definition of a standard or a new XML format
for data exchange in the event of a disaster or crisis situation," he
concludes.

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About AeroScout

AeroScout provides award-winning enterprise visibility solutions
that utilize Wi-Fi wireless networking standards to deliver accurate
location-based solutions. The AeroScout system includes real-time
location services (RTLS), long range active RFID, telemetry and
choke-point visibility all in a single integrated cost-effective
infrastructure. AeroScout's standards-based applications locate
valuable assets and people in indoor and outdoor environments,
enabling customers in numerous industries to drive revenues and cut
costs. AeroScout is a privately held company based in San Mateo, CA.
For more information, please visit www.aeroscout.com.

AeroScout is a registered trademark of AeroScout, Inc. Wi-Fi is a
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