Contact Information: For additional information, please contact: Community Health Network Lynda de Widt 317-621-3636 ForHealth Technologies Inc. Katie Delach Hart-Boillot 781-893-0053
Community Hospital North Chooses IntelliFill i.v. to Increase Patient Safety
Automated I.V. Dose Preparation System Reduces Errors and Hospital Costs
| Quelle: ForHealth Technologies
INDIANAPOLIS, IN and DAYTONA BEACH, FL--(Marketwire - March 25, 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.
More information is available at www.fhtinc.com. ForHealth Technologies:
Innovating for Your I.V. Room's Future™