Charleston Area Medical Center integrates smart pump technology for safety

03-09-2015

Hospira, a provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies, has implemented interoperability between its Plum A+ intravenous infusion devices with Hospira MedNet safety software and the electronic medical record (EMR) at all four hospitals in the Charleston Area Medical Center Health System in Charleston, West Virginia. 

With this implementation, Hospira becomes the first smart pump manufacturer to integrate infusion systems with a third major EMR platform. This advanced technology is also known as IV-EMR interoperability.

"Hospira is proud to be CAMC's chosen partner for IV-EMR interoperability," said Cynthia Ansari, vice president, US marketing and software, medical devices. 

"With this integration, Hospira becomes the first smart pump manufacturer to successfully integrate with three different, major EMR platforms. With the most live integrated hospitals, Hospira's extensive experience enables optimized system functionality and implementation efficiency.

“Hospira further differentiates through committed partnerships with our customers to provide a tailored solution that addresses today's complex clinical environment."

The connectivity between Hospira infusion devices, Hospira MedNet safety software, and the EMR or IV-EMR interoperability allows nurses to automatically program infusion pumps with the pharmacy-validated medication order and confirm the order before patient delivery. 

The infusion information is then automatically sent to the EMR via the secure hospital information system. This enables a pharmacy view displaying currently running infusions to support the timely preparation of subsequent IV medication. 

This system is intended to help support enhanced patient care, safety and efficiency throughout the CAMC health system, which comprises more than 900 beds.

"At Charleston Area Medical Center, we are dedicated to providing the best patient care through the use of innovative technology like Hospira's IV-EMR interoperability," said Ron Moore, chief nursing officer, CAMC. "This solution will help improve medication management processes by connecting the IV pump, medication order, patient and record together."

Hospira, Cynthia Ansari, Ron Moore, Charleston Area Medical Center, US