RFID in Emergency Management

Introduction

In this chapter, we extend the use of technologies from fulfilling secondary needs in society, such as to bring convenience, comfort and gratification, to primary needs for safe, rescue and survival. In ensuring the effective use of the new technologies, the adoption process must be planned carefully. In the past few decades, researchers have introduced various adoption models, such as technology acceptance model (TAM), diffusion of innovation and task-technology fit (TTF) model. These models provide theoretical guidelines for adoption process, and suitable for some specific domains. The aim of this study is to propose a framework for adopting RFID in emergency management based on TTF model.

Technology adoption is a non-trivial process that requires many questions to be answered. For example, what is the most suitable technology to adopt for a particular domain? Which activities can be better facilitated by the technology? How can the technology be utilized to leverage productivity? This chapter is structured into three sections. Section one highlights the nature of emergency situations, its impacts on the society, as well as literature review on emergency management models. Section two emphases on RFID and highlights the use of this technology in the context of emergency management. This section also provides an overview of other technologies which can potentially be used in emergency management. Section three discusses the adoption process. A guideline to adopt RFID in emergency management is also presented in this section.