Press Release
Versus Technology, Inc.
Announces Successful Implementation of Automatic Hospital Tracking System
at Anne Arundel Medical Center
(Traverse City, Michigan, January 14, 2009) – Versus Technology,
Inc. (Versus) has successfully implemented VISion:
Asset Management™ at Anne Arundel Medical Center (AAMC) in Annapolis,
Maryland, ushering in a new era of efficiency and equipment monitoring at the
300+ bed facility. VISion is a real-time locating system (RTLS) that will allow
AAMC to better track the movements of hospital assets throughout the medical
center, improving staff efficiency and allowing for enhanced monitoring of
patient flow.
Since the activation of Versus VISion™ asset tracking technology
in October 2008, AAMC has been tracking 600 hospital assets in and between the
AAMC Acute Care, Clatanoff and Edwards pavilions: over half a million square
feet of hospital real estate. When the hospital completes a current expansion project
adding a second patient tower, more than 3,000 hospital assets will be tracked
using the Versus infrared and radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.
“Asset tracking with Versus is unique at AAMC in that, first and
foremost, we’re using this as a solution for our nursing staff, rather than the
typical maintenance tool,” said Richard Constantineau, Manager of Biomedical
Engineering at AAMC. “The tracking initiative began with mobile medical
equipment such as hospital beds, but we discovered within a week of the asset
tracking software going live that nurses and escorts really need to find
specialty items that biomed would never consider, such as recliners, walkers,
and bariatric commodes.”
Constantineau explained that searching for items across the
hospital—especially those in short supply—can tax nursing efficiency and divert
focus from clinical responsibilities. “Our immediate goal is to increase
efficiencies for nursing staff, and to help them find the items they need
quickly.” According to Constantineau, it could take up to an hour or two per
day, per nurse or escort to find equipment shifted across the expansive medical
center. Now, it takes five minutes.
“In order for an asset tracking system to be useful, your staff
have to be able to trust that they are looking at real-time results of where
that asset is located at the moment,” said Constantineau. “We tried several
location systems on our wireless network, one for over a year and a half, but
we couldn’t get them to work correctly. We’d seen several systems fail, so I
was very leery going into our asset tracking pilot with Versus – but the system
worked like a charm. We tried to get the system to read wrong, but it wouldn’t
break. We’ve never had an issue with Versus and the nursing staff love it.”
The next steps at AAMC include expanding asset tracking to
further enhance hospital efficiency and equipment monitoring while pushing
forward a number of preventative maintenance goals. In January, the medical
center will implement Versus Reports Plus™ software to establish equipment
baselines for clinical areas, conduct an equipment flow study, and create a
model for equipment storage. AAMC also plans to conduct a telemetry patient
tracking pilot, integrate the location information to the nurse call system,
and add staff locators to automate processes across the hospital.
“Working with Anne Arundel provided Versus the opportunity to
demonstrate the accuracy and ease of use of our dual IR and active RFID system
over other less accurate Wi-Fi systems,” says Paul Timmerman, Versus’ VP of
Business Development. “We know our tracking system works; that physicians,
nurses, and clinicians can depend on it. Versus is the most experienced RTLS
vendor in the industry, with hundreds of clients and thousands of caregivers
relying on our system 24/7. We look forward to assisting Anne Arundel with
facility-wide location information to positively transform their healthcare
delivery network.”
About Anne Arundel Medical
Center
Anne
Arundel Health System began in 1902 as a not-for-profit community hospital to
serve the Maryland capital city of Annapolis. Since then, it has evolved
into a regional healthcare system serving nearly one million people in
Maryland. Nearly 23,000 patients are admitted into Anna Arundel Medical
Center each year. Additionally, more than 5,700 births and more than
72,000 emergency room visits are conducted at the medical center
annually. In 2007, AAMC began expansion projects that will double the size
of the hospital campus by the year 2011.
About Versus Technology, Inc.
For
nearly 20 years, Versus Technology, Inc. has maintained the leadership position
in the development and sale of context-aware real-time location systems (RTLS) used for enterprise patient tracking, bed management and asset
tracking to improve patient
flow and caregiver/patient
communications in hospitals, clinics and long-term care facilities. Versus also
develops dual infrared and Active RFID tags and other location tracking
hardware to make locating systems more precise, security systems more
intelligent, nurse call systems automatic, and hospital asset tracking systems
more efficient. Indoor positioning through Versus’ RTLS enhances existing
hospital software and patient care systems with real-time, reliable bed-level
location information. The patented Versus IR and Active RFID patient and asset tracking system is exclusively endorsed by
the American Hospital Association and is a key component of their Patient Flow
Platform—which includes a select group of vendors that provide proven solutions
to enhance patient flow and improve patient safety. (www.versustech.com; Pink Sheets: VSTI.PK)
Safe Harbor Provision
This
document may contain forward-looking statements relating to future events, such
as the development of new products, the commencement of production, or the
future financial performance of the Company. These statements fall within the
meaning of forward-looking information as defined in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to a number of
important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially including, but not limited to, economic, competitive, governmental,
and technological factors affecting the Company’s markets and market growth
rates, products and their rate of commercialization, services, prices and
adequacy of financing, and other factors. The Company undertakes no obligation
to update, amend, or clarify forward-looking statements, whether because of new
information, future events, or otherwise.
###
Media
Contact: Investor/Analyst
Contact:
Versus Technology, Inc. Versus Technology,
Inc.
Stephanie Bertschy, Director of Marketing Joseph Winowiecki, Chief
Financial Officer
877.983.7787 231.946.5868
skb@versustech.com joew@versustech.com
