STERILE PROCESSING
and supply storage capacity that can’t accommodate today’s volumes. “In the ASC world, we have
an absolute need for storage because so many procedures have shifted to this setting in the past 30 years (e.g., implant procedures, retina procedures) and the numbers of sets and disposables required are greater than they were pre- vious to this,” Harmer com- mented. “There are a number of companies providing offsite sterile processing services for ASCs today, as well as health- care organizations building their own offsite locations to reprocess instruments for their own ASCs.
She explained how IST has broadened its product family to include OneCart, a sealed case cart fea- turing a “modular, sleek and modernistic” design that is vertical rather than horizontal. “We purposely went for vertical because
the design requires a smaller footprint to be housed but still addresses the more intense
IST OneCart
requirements for supplies and instrument trays, as well as offsite sterilization needs,” said Harmer. “We put very good casters on it, so it glides and moves with ease, which is the secret to any case cart. It also features a handle to make it more ergonomic; staff don’t have to throw their body weight on it to move it.”
She noted that with ASCs and other facilities sending their trays offsite for repro- cessing, OneCart is “perfect” for organizations that must transport carts. “It is easier to secure in a truck because it doesn’t require much space. From a sterile barrier per- spective, OneCart features a sealing feature when you
close it. It has a built-in tag that can be switched from dirty to clean, and is able to be locked when instrument integrity is a concern.”
OneCart is designed to house IST OneTrays and be used in conjunction with
Leveraging AI to track device and supply usage
“Not all medical devices that go into the human body during a procedure are captured correctly,” said Craig Crock, principal, Southwest Solutions Group. “This creates an environment where the billing to the client is not accurate. This process currently is very manual. The other issue is if there is a future recall on that device by serial number, they may not have correctly documented the device and will not know which patients are at risk.” During medical procedures, Snap & Go by Southwest Solutions Group uses artifi cial
intelligence (AI) to monitor the usage and location of medical devices quickly and accurately in real-time, and documents the device being used in the procedure for future recalls and accurate billing. The system tracks all items used in a procedure, from implants to sutures. Crock explained how the automated process requires minimal eff ort from hospital staff .
“To start, the implant tracking system takes a snapshot of all the items used in the proce- dure. All the nurses have to do is place each item on the pad; the device snaps a picture, and when the light on the pad turns green, the nurse removes the item and repeats the process as needed.” Once a picture is taken, the image con-
verts into machine-readable data. Using cloud-based AI management software, the system identifi es the batch number, serial number, expiration date, and manufacturer SKU, and records this information directly into the patient’s electronic fi le. “If an item is unrecognized, the Identi
inventory management software back-of- fi ce support team will complete the infor- mation and update the item master, with no work required by hospital staff ,” Crock added. “The hospital charge-capture infor- mation automatically uploads into the hos- pital and vendor ERP/EHR systems for accurate billing, easy stock replenishment, and improved operating room supply management.”
Snap & Go from Southwest Solutions Group 34 October 2023 • HEALTHCARE PURCHASING NEWS •
hpnonline.com
Turbett Surgical Instrument Pod
Containers and carts in a range of sizes Healthcare facilities come in various sizes, with different surgical specialties perform- ing varying levels of procedural volumes. Therefore, manufacturers of containers and case carts that offer a wide variety of options are well positioned to meet their range of needs, according to Marcia Frieze, CEO, Case Medical. “At Case Medical, we design based upon usage,” said Frieze. “Like a ‘Russian Matryoshka Doll’ each of our containment systems fi ts seamlessly one into another. Our SteriTite container aligns with the devices within. Our case carts fi t the full range of containers. Having a range of sizes enables us to meet the needs of large med- ical centers, as well as small community hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. In addition, we have a small case cart that can fi t under a counter that we designed for the VA Health System that is fully transportable,
the company’s EZ-Trax modular set up for instrumentation.
Consolidating trays in one contained place
As Kelly Truppo, territory sales manager, Product & Marketing Specialist, Turbett Surgical, pointed out, it is not just storage space constraints that burden sterile pro- cessing teams, but also fi nding trays in storage when they are needed. “When it comes to storage, locating instrument trays you need for a procedure is always a consideration for sterile pro- cessing departments,” said Truppo. “The Turbett Surgical Instrument Pod ensures all the instrument trays you need for a single procedure are in one place. Multi-tray rigid containers also eliminate the need for racks to store stacks of blue wrapped or single rigid container trays, creating more space in sterile processing departments.”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
