ECRI Institute Launches New User Experience Network for Medical Devices

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., June 6, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- ECRI Institute (www.ecri.org) announces the release of its new SELECTplus User Experience Network—a comprehensive decision-support resource for medical technology purchasers with user satisfaction rankings and other key purchasing information. The User Experience Network is the latest enhancement to ECRI Institute's SELECTplus™ capital procurement advisory service used by nearly 2,800 hospitals and health systems worldwide.

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The first module focuses on CT scanning systems, showing rankings by vendor and model, feature-by-feature comparisons, member interest (market share), and average quoted prices.

"CT scanning has been one of the most widespread and useful technologies since the 1970s, and remains so today. Manufacturers have developed an extraordinary number of ways to adapt it, ranging from low-dose systems to equipment that combines capabilities like PET CT," states Jeffrey C. Lerner, PhD, president and chief executive officer, ECRI Institute.

"But when it comes to basic systems," adds Lerner, "our survey respondents find surprisingly few differences among competing brands and models as seen on the User Experience Network. This makes purchase price a more important factor in choosing a system than might have been expected."  

Unlike other user satisfaction rating services in the industry, the SELECTplus "portfolio" draws on the expertise of ECRI Institute's medical technology management experts, including radiologists, physicists, and financial analysts, as well as onsite laboratory testing of medical devices to reveal safety issues, alerts, and recall data on technologies being considered for purchase. The CT scanning systems module also includes deep market analytics and a comprehensive comparative analysis of CT dose reduction technologies.

"Hospital executives and purchasing professionals today need every bit of supporting data and market insight they can get, while keeping a focus on safety and quality," states Jennifer L. Myers, ECRI Institute's vice president of SELECT Health Technology Services. "This user experience network adds a critical component to our suite of analytical and benchmarking tools that our members rely on to make cost-effective purchasing decisions."

SELECTplus polled hundreds of end users of CT scanning systems currently on the market to develop the first module of its new data center. Nearly 300 users reported direct experience with one or more of 17 systems and rated them on a variety of criteria, including:

• performance  
• ease of use
• image quality
• dose control functionality
• service response time
• user training
• vendor support

SELECTplus is currently conducting its next survey, profiling user experience of physiologic monitors. The resulting customer satisfaction ratings, combined with ECRI Institute's exclusive analysis, will be available on the SELECTplus member website in July 2013.

SELECTplus is an industry-leading advisory service for supply chain and materials management professionals to assist in the safe, cost-effective selection and procurement of capital medical equipment and health information technologies.

For more information about the SELECTplus User Experience Network, contact Jennifer Myers at (610) 825-6000, ext. 5287, or e-mail [email protected]. To learn more about ECRI Institute, contact us by phone at (610) 825-6000; by e-mail at [email protected]; or by mail at 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462.

About ECRI Institute

ECRI Institute, a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research to healthcare to discover which medical procedures, devices, drugs, and processes are best to enable improved patient care. As pioneers in this science for 45 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. Strict conflict-of-interest guidelines ensure objectivity. ECRI Institute is designated an Evidence-based Practice Center by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. ECRI Institute PSO is listed as a federally certified Patient Safety Organization by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Find ECRI Institute on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ECRIInstitute) and on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ECRI_Institute). For more information, visit www.ecri.org.

SOURCE ECRI Institute