Frost & Sullivan Recognizes DebMed's Pioneering Efforts in the Electronic Hand Hygiene Solutions Market

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Oct. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Based on its recent analysis of the hand hygiene solutions market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes DebMed with the 2013 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for New Product Innovation. The DebMed® GMS™ (Group Monitoring System) is a first-of-its-kind electronic hand hygiene monitoring tool, based on an easily deployable wireless platform that does not require any expensive support infrastructure such as radio frequency identification (RFID) or real-time locating system (RTLS).

As hand hygiene compliance rates among doctors remain low, and hospital-acquired infections affect one in every twenty hospitalized patients, the DebMed GMS offers hospitals an innovative platform that helps maximize hand hygiene compliance.

"Current methodologies used to measure hand hygiene compliance in healthcare organizations include daily observation from the staff, manual product utilization estimations, and other manual reporting methods," said Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst, Caroline Loutfi. "However, these current methodologies are inherently flawed; DebMed addresses most of their shortcomings with its automated solution."

The DebMed GMS does away with manual surveillance, thereby saving time, resources and costs. By offering real-time data capture and report, it reduces the time taken to influence and analyze compliance with hand hygiene regulations in healthcare settings. Hand hygiene monitors may capture only 1.2 percent to 3.5 percent of all hand hygiene opportunities; whereas, the DebMed GMS captures 100 percent of hand hygiene events through sensors in soap and sanitizer dispensers that send data back each time the dispenser is used. Finally, the DebMed GMS also does away with observer bias by standardizing hand hygiene reporting and increases accuracy.

The DebMed GMS is the only electronic hand hygiene monitoring system that uses scientific rigor to calculate the number of times healthcare workers should have cleaned their hands. This is calculated based on published research that, for the first time, benchmarked the number of hand hygiene opportunities based on hospital type (teaching versus non-teaching), hospital size, and unit type (medical-surgical, critical care and emergency department units). This data is then customized to each hospital unit by dynamically accounting for the ever-changing patient census as well as other proprietary, hospital-specific factors that feed into the calculation algorithm.

The DebMed GMS is also the only electronic hand hygiene monitoring system with the ability to track healthcare worker hand hygiene compliance at the critical point-of-care by enabling specialized, away-from-wall monitored dispensers that provide access to a hand sanitizer within an arm's reach.

"The automation of hand hygiene tracking ensures compliance and allows institutions a better understanding of how well protocols are being followed in specific settings and departments," noted Loutfi. "Therefore, system administrators are able to quantitatively relate adherence of guidelines to improvement in patient outcomes, reduction in infection rates, and ultimately saving lives."

The DebMed GMS was developed based on industry thought leader research, insight and feedback that demonstrates that monitoring compliance at the group (unit) level is better perceived by staff than utilizing badges to track individuals, which can be deemed as a punitive measure. This philosophy of creating a positive culture of patient safety through team collaboration drives individual accountability as well as fosters sustained behavior change.

Nosocomial infections not only endanger patients but hospitals employees as well. The loss of work and productivity can be a significant strain on many institutions that are already short staffed. Therefore, the value proposition of automated tools like the DebMed GMS system, one of the most cost-effective solutions in the market, is immediately apparent.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that that has developed an innovative element in a product by leverage leading-edge technologies. The award recognizes the value added features/benefits of the product and the increased ROI it offers customers, which in turn increases customer acquisition and overall market penetration potential.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.

About DebMed®

DebMed is the healthcare program of the Deb Group. The DebMed program offers innovative hand hygiene products, electronic monitoring technology, and improvement tools to support hand hygiene compliance. The DebMed® GMS™ (Group Monitoring System) is the world's first group monitoring system to report hand hygiene compliance rates in real-time based on the World Health Organization's (WHO) "Five Moments for Hand Hygiene" and to date has recorded more than 27 million hand hygiene events. The electronic monitoring system is being utilized in a four year, multi-site research project being conducted by the Columbia University School of Nursing and funded by a $1.2 million grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). It is the first study aimed at reducing healthcare-associated infections in pediatric long-term care facilities by improving staff compliance with hand hygiene guidelines. For more information on the study or DebMed, visit www.debmed.com.

About Deb Group

Possessing international scale and strong local market presence, Deb Group provides innovative skin care programs for all types of workplace and public environments, spanning industrial, commercial, healthcare and food sectors. Headquartered in the United Kingdom with US operations based in Charlotte, NC, Deb Group is comprised of 21 companies operating in 16 countries. For more information, visit www.debgroup.com.

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SOURCE Frost & Sullivan