Final Results of VeinViewer Utilization Study at St. Elizabeth Healthcare Show Potential Savings of More Than $238,000 in 2013

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Sept. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Christie Medical Holdings, Inc., a global leader in mobile vascular imaging systems, and St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Kentucky today announced the  final results of a quality improvement study evaluating the use of VeinViewer® for the reduction of medically unnecessary peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) in an adult, renal-compromised population.  The study assessed if using VeinViewer resulted in an increased success rate of peripheral IV's, resulting in a decrease in the number of medically unnecessary PICCs.  Patients who have had PICC lines placed prior to AV fistula creation are more than 3 times as likely to experience AVF failure. By utilizing VeinViewer, the first and only full field digital HD vein imaging device on the market, close to 350 medically unnecessary PICC lines were avoided in 2013 compared to their 2012 baseline, over a 20 percent decrease.  Based on an average national PICC cost of about $700, a similar reduction in PICCs would result in a potential savings of $238,000.

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"In renal disease patients, it is critically important to preserve veins for the creation of arteriovenous fistulas (AVF)," said Patti Wilcox, RN, VA BC, and team lead of St. Elizabeth's 2013 Vein Preservation Campaign.  Wilcox added, "The PICC reduction results are truly a product of quality improvement efforts undertaken by a team of expert IV nurses at St. Elizabeth's and using the leading vein viewing technology."

Preliminary results were presented to healthcare professionals in November 2013 at the Kentucky Organization for Nurse Leaders Conference with the final results announced at the Association for Vascular Access annual scientific meeting on September 9, 2014.

"We are very pleased that our VeinViewer technology contributed in so many significant ways at St. Elizabeth, including improvements in the healthcare delivery process; a decrease in unnecessary PICC line placements; an increase in vein preservation; and significant cost savings for the hospital," said Chris Schnee, general manager and vice president of Sales and Marketing at Christie Medical Holdings, Inc.

Results like those achieved by St. Elizabeth Healthcare continue to validate the effectiveness of VeinViewer in reducing medically unnecessary PICC lines, their mounting costs and potential risk of infection, while offering a return on investment.  

VeinViewer is the only vein illumination device on the market that provides pre-, during-, and post-access benefits throughout the entire vascular access procedure and has been shown through clinical studies to increase both first stick success and patient satisfaction up to 100 percent. 

VeinViewer technology was developed with the aid of the engineering capabilities and resources of parent company Christie Digital Systems, a leading global visual technology firm with more than 80 years of experience in the projection systems industry. VeinViewer uses harmless near-infrared light, DLP^® technologies, and exclusive Active Vascular Imaging Navigation (AVIN™) to provide the demanded Pre, During and Post-access (PDP) benefits. VeinViewer provides TrueView imaging accuracy in projected vein-widths, which is three to ten times more accurate than the competition, and technologies such as Df² (Digital full field) to illuminate the only available real-time HD digital image of subcutaneous vasculature and blood patterns directly onto the skin surface.  Although designed for assistance in IV starts and blood draws, VeinViewer has proven beneficial in spider and varicose vein treatment.

To learn more about Christie product offerings:  VeinViewer Vision2, VeinViewer Vision^XTND and VeinViewer Flex, please visit our refreshed website at www.christiemed.com.

St. Elizabeth Healthcare
St. Elizabeth Healthcare operates six facilities throughout Northern Kentucky — Edgewood, Florence, Ft. Thomas, Covington, Grant and Falmouth. It also has vast resources to serve the Greater Cincinnati area, including almost 1,200 licensed beds, a physician organization which includes more than 86 primary care and specialty office locations, more than 1,200 physicians with admitting privileges, more than 7,400 associates including St. Elizabeth Physicians, more than 1,200 volunteers, three freestanding imaging centers and two outpatient ambulatory surgery centers. St. Elizabeth Healthcare is sponsored by the Diocese of Covington and provided more than $93 million in uncompensated care and benefit to the community in 2011. For more information, visit www.stelizabeth.com.

About Christie Medical Holdings, Inc.
Christie Medical Holdings Inc. is a global company based in Memphis, Tenn., that discovers, develops and commercializes medical technologies. The company's market-leading product, VeinViewer, is a mobile vascular imaging system that allows health care providers to clearly see accessible vasculature as a real time HD image, directly on the surface of the skin. Christie Medical Holdings Inc. is owned by Christie Digital Systems Inc., a global visual technologies company and a subsidiary of Ushio Inc., Japan (JP:6925). For more information on Christie Digital Systems or Christie Medical Holdings, visit www.christiemed.com.

Media contacts:  

Guy Karrick
Public Relations Manager
St. Elizabeth Healthcare
859-301-6315
Email

Carmen Robert
Christie Public Relations
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SOURCE Christie Medical Holding