Englewood, Colo.-based UV-Concepts, Inc., a provider of ultraviolet light disinfection solutions, announces the launch of the UV-C Enclosure (UVE), the first automated no-touch UV-C enclosure designed to improve upon the existing standard of manual cleaning and disinfection of large portable medical equipment (PME). The UVE is one component of a three-pronged ecosystem solution that includes digital tags and a cloud-based process management system to enable improved tracking and monitoring of PME disinfection in the healthcare setting.
Research shows high-touch surfaces on PME, such as wheelchairs, intravenous poles, computer workstations, and infusion pumps, are a potential vector for transmission of bacteria and viruses, including MRSA, C.Diff, and SARS-CoV-2. UV-Concepts developed a platform using short-wavelength ultraviolet light (UV-C, 254nm) in an enclosed structure to optimize the inactivation of disease-causing microorganisms. Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation has been shown to be an effective method of disinfection in healthcare over the past decade.
“The concern for the cleaning and disinfection of high-touch surfaces in the healthcare environment has grown exponentially due to COVID-19,” says Jeremy Starkweather, president and co-founder of UV-Concepts Inc. “The UVE completely surrounds an item with high-intensity germicidal UV-C light, resulting in the fastest and most powerful UV-C disinfection solution available to healthcare providers. We’re very pleased to make the UVE available for healthcare institutions globally to help protect patients, healthcare workers, and visitors from harmful bacteria and viruses.”
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated about 700,000 patients are diagnosed with a healthcare-associated infection (HAI) each year in the United States, and of those, 70,000 die during their acute care hospitalization. While progress has been made to reduce, and in some cases eliminate HAIs, the market is constantly seeking new and improved disinfection solutions.
“With use of the UVE, we have been able to process over 5,200 N95 masks, which allows us to get five uses per N95 mask. It has been a lifesaver when no new N95 masks were available,” says John P. Ostdiek, director of transportation, Aramark,at Saint Joseph Hospital of SCL Health in Denver. “We also run all portable medical equipment that can fit in the enclosure for treatment and have physicians request to use the unit for their own equipment. This is the right piece of equipment at the right time to help healthcare personnel have one more tool to stop the spread of infectious diseases in a hospital setting.”
