DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., March 7 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its long history of employing the latest medical advances to improve patient care, its working environment and cost efficiency, the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) of Baltimore today announced it has chosen to install and use ForHealth Technologies, Inc.'s IntelliFill i.v. pharmacy robotic technology to automate the hospital pharmacy’s i.v. drug preparation delivery process.
“Patient safety is a top priority at the University of Maryland Medical Center, and the investment in the IntelliFill i.v. system will be a valuable enhancement to our pharmacy department,” said Marc Summerfield, director of pharmacy services at the University of Maryland Medical Center. “The IntelliFill i.v. furthers our mission to be a national leader in using technology to improve patient care, enhance patient safety, improve efficiency and advance clinical practice.”
IntelliFill i.v. automates the compounding and labeling of intravenous doses in syringes at speeds that can only be achieved through automated processes. By employing bar code scanning, vision systems and weight confirmation steps, and by providing final products that are identified with bar codes, IntelliFill i.v. reduces medication errors. Furthermore, by providing an ISO Class 4 compounding environment, IntelliFill i.v. assures that the final i.v. product produced is of the highest quality. The system also promotes long-term hospital cost savings by preparing the final intravenous products in a syringe instead of an i.v. bag.
With more than five million patient-use syringes prepared in U.S. hospitals by its IntelliFill i.v. robots, ForHealth Technologies understands the challenges and rigorous requirements these hospitals and health care organizations currently face to improve accuracy, productivity and sterility. ForHealth’s innovations are setting new standards for hospital pharmacies in patient safety, cost efficiency and compliance with new regulations such as U.S. Pharmacopoeia <797>.
“We’re extremely proud to work with leading hospitals such as the University of Maryland Medical Center,” said Rod Wolford, chairman and CEO of ForHealth Technologies, Inc. “This announcement is a reflection of our commitment to provide hospitals with access to the highest quality care possible. It’s exciting to know the IntelliFill i.v. system will benefit the entire Baltimore-area community as well as UMMC’s health care workers, who depend on the latest medical technology to improve their working environment.”
Summerfield agrees: “By automating the i.v. preparation process, we expect the IntelliFill i.v. system will allow the pharmacy to operate more efficiently and will reduce the chance of medication errors. The IntelliFill i.v. system will also complement our current robotic technology and pharmacy information system.”
About University of Maryland Medical Center
The University of Maryland Medical Center is a major, innovative teaching hospital in downtown Baltimore that provides state-of-the-art health care to more than 250,000 patients each year. The 650-bed facility serves as a regional referral center for the most serious and complicated health problems in adults and children including cancer, trauma, heart disease, neurological conditions and organ transplants. Additional information about the University of Maryland Medical Center can be found at http://www.umm.edu/ .
About ForHealth Technologies, Inc.
Founded in 1998, ForHealth Technologies, Inc., a leader in automated devices for intravenous drug preparation, is committed to increasing patient safety and decreasing operating costs by automating the preparation of small- volume injectable medications in health care organizations worldwide. Offering safety, accuracy, efficiency and reliability, its IntelliFill i.v. automates the preparation of i.v. syringes, greatly enhancing both the safety of patients and the efficiency of hospital pharmacies. For more information, please visit http://www.fhtinc.com/ .
Contact: Joel Osborne ForHealth Technologies, Inc. 386-274-4447 josborne@fhtinc.com Kevin Punsky The Dalton Agency 904-398-5222 kpunsky@daltonagency.com
ForHealth Technologies
CONTACT: Joel Osborne of ForHealth Technologies, Inc., +1-386-274-4447,or josborne@fhtinc.com; or Kevin Punsky of The Dalton Agency, +1-904-398-5222,or kpunsky@daltonagency.com, for ForHealth Technologies