NiQ Heath’s MRSA killing Patient Stations installed into Australian hospital
Perth, Western Australia (PRWEB) October 27, 2014 -- NiQ Health is pleased to announce the first installation of their CarePlus™ antimicrobial patient and staff stations into a private, Western Australian hospital. The patient and staff stations contain built-in, organic, antimicrobial protection from serious bacteria and infections. The equipment uses state-of-the-art material that inhibits the growth of potentially harmful bacteria, fungi and algae. Extensive testing conducted showed that the antimicrobial material achieved a 99% biocidal kill rate for a wide range of bacteria including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Salmonella enteritidis, E. coli and Listeria monocytogenes.
Western Australian private hospital, Saint John of God Geraldton Hospital, is committed to providing high quality care to their patients. The facility has been operating since 1935, providing care to the Geraldton, North of Perth and Midwest region of Western Australia. Their goal of constantly meeting industry best practice led them to choose the CarePlus™ antimicrobial patient and staff stations for their recent hospital wide upgrade. Saint John of God Geraldton has several quality and safety policies in place that measure quality and risk management, ensures service and doctor accreditation, and analyses externally collected patient satisfaction data; the CarePlus™ antimicrobial patient and staff stations further ensure the safety of patients and staff.
Serious infections or ‘superbugs’ such as MRSA are an increasing concern for many hospitals internationally. The cost of these infections to Governments and healthcare providers is growing rapidly, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement estimates that the total cost to the US healthcare system from MRSA infections alone is at more than $2.5 billion annually. For each patient infected with MRSA their hospital stay is extended by an average 9.1 days, a serious issue for already overloaded acute care facilities. The CarePlus™ antimicrobial patient and staff stations are able to continuously fight the growth of bacteria, providing continuous protection against bacterial contamination. The antimicrobial technology interferes with the cell wall of micro-organisms that come into contact with the surface, disrupting key cell functions and preventing microbes from functioning, growing or reproducing.
The CarePlus™ antimicrobial patient and staff station meets Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) requirements for medical devices. The Therapeutic Goods (Medical Devices) Regulations 2002 – Schedule 1, Part 2, Principle 8.1 of the Commonwealth Government Act the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 requires medical device manufacturers to design and produce their product in a way that minimises or eliminates the risk of infection and contamination to a patient or user of the device. NiQ Health views patient safety and regulation protecting patients of highest priority with their CarePlus™ Nurse Call Life Safety System. The addition of antimicrobial patient and staff stations ensures protection of patient and staff safety by significantly reducing the spread of infections and bacteria through physical contact with the CarePlus™ system.
NiQ Health’s CarePlus™ significantly improves the workflow and efficiency of clinicians and caregivers while simultaneously combatting growing concerns within the healthcare environment, a demonstration of these capabilities can be viewed here. CarePlus™ can be considered “middleware in a box” integrating smartphones, paging, wireless and VOIP telephony, ward signs, large screen information boards, email, patient entertainment terminals, duress systems and Building Management Systems (BMS). CarePlus™ provides extensive reporting and Business Intelligence software capabilities providing significant workflow productivity efficiencies and improved patient safety. More information can be found at http://www.careplus-niqhealth.com.au
Sarah Binns, NiQ Health, http://www.careplus-niqhealth.com, +61 417761316, [email protected]
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