Oklahoma hospital deploys O.R. safety technology
09 November, 2010
category: RFID
Jane Phillips Medical Center in Bartlesville, Okl. has teamed together with ClearCount Medical Solutions and Medline Industries to introduce an RFID platform aimed to prevent retained surgical sponge incidents.
In all of its operating rooms, Jane Phillips implemented ClearCount’s SmartWand-DTX, an RFID-based platform that uniquely counts and detects all surgical sponges used during hospital procedures.
A safety net for human error, the SmartWand-DTX works in conjunction with the SmartSponge System, both of which are FDA-cleared, and allows staff to operate at an exceptional level of patient safety, and also provide staff with a safer and more efficient method for reconciling surgical counts.
Sponges are affixed with a RFID tag which transmits any count discrepancies. If a discrepancy occurs, a SmartWand scan is used to identify any sponges remaining in the patient. The SmartSponge system saves time, prevents unnecessary X-rays, reduces the possibility of user error, minimizes delays in procedures and reduces the hassles associated with count discrepancies.