The VeriScan Medication Administration System is intended to cut down on the number of medication distribution errors. By using barcodes and RFID the Veriscan system is more precise than hand written notes.
VeriScan is the first medication verification system to utilize the dual technology of bar codes and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag readers to track medication administered by the nurse directly at the patient’s bedside.
“The majority of medication errors that occur each year at hospitals are at the point of administration,” said Thomas Ague, president of Sculptor and Executive Vice President/COO of St. Clair Hospital. “The VeriScan system validates that the nurse is giving the right medication, in the right dose, at the right time via the right route to the right patient.”
Sculptor Developmental Technologies, Inc. announced it has entered into an agreement with Leading Information Technologies Institute, Inc. (LITI) of Tokyo, Japan to market and distribute Sculptor’s VeriScan medication administration system to healthcare organizations in 15 Asian nations.
LITI is the leading provider of state-of-the-art RFID technology in Japan. Mark Hathaway, president of LITI’s US subsidiary said “Our goal is to thoroughly automate the healthcare industry in Japan by applying RFID technology to improve efficiency, and patient outcomes. We sought out the leading hospitals in the U.S. with a proven track record using RFID technology, and after an extensive tour of select U.S. hospitals, we were convinced that St. Clair’s VeriScan solution was the leading technology available in medication error prevention. We needed an RFID-centric application that would compliment our existing solutions, and since VeriScan ensures accuracy with each medication administration, it will blend nicely with our comprehensive healthcare offerings.”
“The VeriScan technology prevents thousands of medication errors every year saving lives and delivering millions of dollars in cost-savings – it’s a winner,” he said.
VeriScan runs on Pocket PCs that are equipped with a dual RFID and bar code reader. The nurse scans the bar code on the medication package and RFID tags on both the patient’s wristband and the nurse’s identification badge. VeriScan was developed by Sculptor’s software engineers in 2003 using the “real-world” input of St. Clair Hospital physicians, nurses and other clinicians. Tested at the 331-bed St. Clair Hospital in early 2004, VeriScan is now installed in four U.S. hospitals. St. Clair Hospital is now piloting an enhancement to VeriScan that checks lab specimens and blood transfusions.
“VeriScan compares the patient and medication data with the physician’s order in the hospital’s clinical information system to ensure there is a correct match.” said Richard Schaeffer, chief information officer and vice president at St. Clair Hospital. “The nurse is immediately alerted to discrepancies and potential errors are prevented.”
Updates or changes to a patient’s medication order are available in real-time providing the nurse instant access to those changes. VeriScan also automatically charts each medication administration into the patient’s Electronic Medical Record (EMR) thereby saving data entry time and reducing the chance for additional errors.
VeriScan is the first medication verification system to utilize the dual technology of bar codes and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag readers to track medication administered by the nurse directly at the patient’s bedside.
“The majority of medication errors that occur each year at hospitals are at the point of administration,” said Thomas Ague, president of Sculptor and Executive Vice President/COO of St. Clair Hospital. “The VeriScan system validates that the nurse is giving the right medication, in the right dose, at the right time via the right route to the right patient.”
Sculptor Developmental Technologies, Inc. announced it has entered into an agreement with Leading Information Technologies Institute, Inc. (LITI) of Tokyo, Japan to market and distribute Sculptor’s VeriScan medication administration system to healthcare organizations in 15 Asian nations.
LITI is the leading provider of state-of-the-art RFID technology in Japan. Mark Hathaway, president of LITI’s US subsidiary said “Our goal is to thoroughly automate the healthcare industry in Japan by applying RFID technology to improve efficiency, and patient outcomes. We sought out the leading hospitals in the U.S. with a proven track record using RFID technology, and after an extensive tour of select U.S. hospitals, we were convinced that St. Clair’s VeriScan solution was the leading technology available in medication error prevention. We needed an RFID-centric application that would compliment our existing solutions, and since VeriScan ensures accuracy with each medication administration, it will blend nicely with our comprehensive healthcare offerings.”
“The VeriScan technology prevents thousands of medication errors every year saving lives and delivering millions of dollars in cost-savings – it’s a winner,” he said.
VeriScan runs on Pocket PCs that are equipped with a dual RFID and bar code reader. The nurse scans the bar code on the medication package and RFID tags on both the patient’s wristband and the nurse’s identification badge. VeriScan was developed by Sculptor’s software engineers in 2003 using the “real-world” input of St. Clair Hospital physicians, nurses and other clinicians. Tested at the 331-bed St. Clair Hospital in early 2004, VeriScan is now installed in four U.S. hospitals. St. Clair Hospital is now piloting an enhancement to VeriScan that checks lab specimens and blood transfusions.
“VeriScan compares the patient and medication data with the physician’s order in the hospital’s clinical information system to ensure there is a correct match.” said Richard Schaeffer, chief information officer and vice president at St. Clair Hospital. “The nurse is immediately alerted to discrepancies and potential errors are prevented.”
Updates or changes to a patient’s medication order are available in real-time providing the nurse instant access to those changes. VeriScan also automatically charts each medication administration into the patient’s Electronic Medical Record (EMR) thereby saving data entry time and reducing the chance for additional errors.
