Bethlehem, PA (April 15, 2003) – B. Braun Medical Inc. today announced that the group purchasing arm of Premier, the nationwide alliance of leading hospitals and health systems, selected the B. Braun Outlook™ Safety Infusion System for a new contract category for Medication Management Infusion Systems. The Outlook Safety Infusion System is currently the first system on the market that meets the criteria for this potentially multi-source contract category.
“After reviewing the infusion pump market, as well as looking at the literature regarding medical errors, it was clear that Premier had an opportunity to offer something new to members,” said Bob Hamon, senior vice president, Premier Group Purchasing Services. “Our contracting committee determined that B. Braun’s pump offered something different from traditional technology. We’re pleased to offer this product under competitive terms and conditions for our members.”
To meet the criteria for the new Medication Management Infusion System contract, the technology must be capable of supporting the “Five Rights” of the IV drug administration process: Right Patient, Right Drug, Right Dose, Right Route, Right Time. In addition, the product must offer a technology interface designed to enhance the medication and dose identification process, and capable of transferring information back to the device (such as a bar code scanner, radiofrequency chip, magnetic strip, smart card, or I-button).
“It brings us great pleasure to announce that the Outlook Safety Infusion System is the only product on the market to meet Premier’s stringent criteria for this new contract category,” said Sheila Kempf, Vice President of Marketing for B. Braun Medical Inc. “As an industry leader in safety engineered medical products, it is very gratifying to partner with Premier in an effort to establish this important new contract category for IV medication error prevention.”
The Premier contract includes the B. Braun Outlook Safety Infusion System 200, 300 and 400 series and is effective through December 31, 2005. The recently introduced Outlook Safety Infusion System uses barcode technology helps to ensure the “right” patient is receiving the “right” drug in the “right” dose from an “authorized” clinician. Its patented DoseScan™ barcode technology creates a primary level of safety – with automated checks and balances that augment the manual procedures commonly used today. Secondary protection is provided by its DoseGuard™ software, which notifies clinicians if institution defined dose limits are exceeded. The combined technologies help to reduce human error and enable hospitals to provide an unprecedented level of IV medication delivery safety for patients.
The Outlook Safety Infusion System has an open architecture design that enables it to interface with any hospital or pharmacy information management system. This provides the institution the freedom to choose the right system for their needs. If the hospital does not currently have a pharmacy system in place, a B. Braun software package is available to enable the hospital to generate barcodes.
About B. Braun
With more than 28,000 employees worldwide, B. Braun is a full line supplier of innovative healthcare products & programs designed to improve both patient and clinician safety. Through its People, Products, and Programs - "Working Together for Excellence in Safety™" initiative, B. Braun promotes best practices and products for continuous improvement of safety.
Founded 160 years ago, B. Braun is proud of its longstanding tradition and commitment to delivering innovative healthcare products and programs with unmatched quality, superior technology, and cost-effectiveness, while maintaining environmental responsibility. For more information about B. Braun or its safety healthcare products, call 800-854-6851, or visit B. Braun at www.bbraunusa.com.
