Community Hospital North Chooses
IntelliFill i.v. to Increase Patient Safety
Automated I.V. dose preparation system
reduces errors and hospital costs
INDIANAPOLIS, IN and DAYTONA BEACH, FL -- March
XX, 2008 -- Community Hospital North recently
announced its installation of ForHealth Technologies Inc.’s
robotic I.V. dose preparation system. IntelliFill i.v.
will enable the Indianapolis hospital to automate its
pharmacy I.V. drug preparation processes, reducing errors,
increasing patient safety and lower costs. The new system
was activated on Monday, March 17, and can produce up
to 600 doses/hour.
As the number of intravenous drugs being administered
and the number of doses being compounded increase, the
possibility for errors rises. IntelliFill i.v. reduces
errors in the hospital pharmacy through bar code identification
and advanced robotics. IntelliFill i.v. automates the
compounding and labeling of intravenous doses and has
demonstrated its effectiveness in the preparation of over
21 million patient doses.
The 490-bed Community Hospital North is part of the Community
Health Network system, which last month was ranked 15th
in an annual list of the top 100 most integrated health
networks in the United States by Verispan, a Pennsylvania-based
health care data and consulting firm. The addition of
IntelliFill i.v. comes on the heels of the Community Hospital
North’s announcement of an automated system for
the repackaging of oral solid tabs. Bringing these automated
technologies together ensures that all medication leaving
the pharmacy will have a machine-applied bar code. In
conjunction with Community Hospital North’s Point-of-Use
dispensing system, all medications are checked for 100%
accuracy and are contamination free before leaving the
pharmacy.
“Patient safety is our number one priority and
the IntelliFill i.v. robot has an error-free track record,”
said Steve Hultgren, Vice President of Pharmacy Services
for Community Health Systems. “This technology will
dramatically change the way things are done in the hospital
pharmacy. Automation is becoming a key factor in ensuring
that patients are safe. IntelliFill i.v. takes Community
Hospital North to a level of quality healthcare which
otherwise couldn’t be achieved.”
Community Health Network plans to use IntelliFill i.v.
as the central component in a hub and spoke model. The
speed and accuracy with which the robot produces I.V.
doses will allow for the automation of all doses for the
five local Community Health Network hospitals: Community
Hospitals North, South and East, Community Hospital Anderson
and The Indiana Heart Hospital.
About Community Health Network
Ranked among the top 20 integrated health care networks
in the nation, Community Health Network has more than
70 sites of care throughout central Indiana. This includes
Community Hospitals East, North and South in Indianapolis
and Community Hospital Anderson; The Indiana Heart Hospital,
a dedicated heart hospital; Indiana Surgery Centers; Community
Physicians of Indiana; Community Home Health Services;
MedCheck urgent care centers and MEDPOINT express convenience
clinics; employer health services; nursing homes; and
other health care facilities. Community Health Network
is committed to getting you well and back to your life.
For more information about Community Health Network or
to find a physician, call 800-777-7775 or visit eCommunity.com.
About ForHealth:
Founded in 1998, ForHealth Technologies delivers 21st
century technology combined with professional support
to uniquely enable hospital pharmacies to stay ahead of
the growing challenges faced in preparing injectable medications.
ForHealth Technologies solutions deliver quantum-leap
improvements in key I.V. room performance metrics: accuracy,
patient safety, clinician safety, speed, cost reduction,
and regulatory compliance.
ForHealth Technologies: Innovating for Your I.V.
Room’s Future™
For additional information, please contact:
ForHealth Technologies Inc.
Nicolas Boillot, Hart-Boillot
781-893-0053
nboillot@hartboillot.com
ForHealth Technologies Inc.
Katie Delach, Hart-Boillot
781-893-0053
kdelach@hartboillot.com
