Emily Jerry Foundation Endorses Life-Saving Technology

CLEVELAND, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ --  Nearly four years after the loss of Christopher Jerry's two-year-old daughter, Emily, the anguish over her accidental death lingers on. Now, as the head of a non-profit foundation working to prevent medical errors, Jerry is entering the new year with a renewed sense of purpose promoting an all-new life-saving technology in honor of Emily.

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Today, the Emily Jerry Foundation announced a new partnership with CDEX, Inc. to build public awareness about its pioneering chemical detection equipment designed to ensure medical facilities are delivering the right medications to patients.

Jerry, who formed the non-profit group to push for federal legislation to avoid medical errors like the one that claimed his daughter's life, is actively promoting the life-saving capability of the CDEX ValiMed™ Medication Validation System (MVS) as an imperative device in the prevention of human pharmaceutical errors. Jerry endorsed the product as life-saving equipment that could prevent the death of other toddlers.

ValiMed™ MVS is a technological safety net that provides protection from medication errors for patients, pharmacists and hospitals. The table-top device -- engineered to eliminate mistakes made while mixing compounds at a hospital -- uses a technique called enhanced photoemission spectroscopy to determine if the compounds are correct.

"I plan to do everything possible in my daughter's memory to prevent these horrible tragedies from occurring over and over again," said Jerry, president and chief executive officer of the Mentor, Ohio-based Emily Jerry Foundation. "Technology like the CDEX ValiMed™ MVS equipment is clinically proven to save lives and can prevent the death of other children."

Emily Jerry died in March 2006 when a pharmacy technician's mistake led to the delivery of a fatal dose of saline solution.  Her death came only three days after receiving the lethal dose during what should have been her final chemotherapy treatment.  The grapefruit-sized tumor in her abdomen was gone and her parents were planning a trip to Disney World when the toxic mixture was administered.  

"ValiMed™ MVS is the only technology available today that prevents harm to patients from human errors in the compounding of high-risk medications," said Jerry. "We can immediately begin saving lives with the ValiMed™ MVS system. Let's act now to prevent any more senseless deaths from occurring by asking all medical facilities compounding intravenous medications to install and use the ValiMed™ MVS by CDEX in their pharmacies."

CDEX is a Tucson, AZ-based company specializing in chemical detection technologies with a vision for saving lives and protecting assets. "We are proud to partner with and accept the endorsement of the Emily Jerry Foundation," said CDEX Senior Vice President Gregory A. Firmbach. "The foundation's mission of preventing adverse drug events from occurring aligns perfectly with the designed functionality of ValiMed™ MVS. Our system was designed as a final check to prevent medical errors in the compounding of high-risk drugs in the hospital pharmacy thereby saving lives, enhancing patient safety and eliminating that liability exposure for the hospital."

Worldwide studies continue to show that human errors in the compounding of high-risk medications occur frequently, often result in death or serious injury and the diversion of medical narcotics is a continuing problem.

A University of Michigan study of the ValiMed™ MVS was published in the American Journal of Health System Pharmacists. During the study, five potentially serious medication errors were averted over an 18-month period at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in the University of Michigan Health System utilizing the technology. The research team received the 2009 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Literature Award for Pharmacy Practice Research. For more information on the study, go to www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=6255.

About the Emily Jerry Foundation

The Emily Jerry Foundation was established in May 2009 on the premise that every child born into this world is truly a miracle. The non-profit organization was formed shortly after Ohio legislators passed Emily's Law, which created licensing and minimum education requirements for pharmacy technicians. The foundation's mission is to protect children from medical errors. The foundation is actively working to save lives as well as make medical facilities safer by partnering with key organizations and businesses to promote life-saving technology. Support for the Emily Jerry Foundation will ensure the organization can immediately begin saving lives. For more information or to make a donation, go to www.emilyjerryfoundation.org.

About CDEX

CDEX develops, manufactures and globally distributes products to the healthcare and security markets.  The ValiMed™ MVS product line provides life-saving validation of high-risk medications and returned narcotics.  The ID2™ product line detects trace amounts of illegal drugs, such as methamphetamine.  CDEX expects to advance its patented technologies to serve additional markets. To meet its plans, CDEX must strengthen its financial position as stated periodically in its SEC filings.  For more information, go to www.cdexinc.com.

SOURCE Emily Jerry Foundation