St. Mary's Children's Hospital Doubles Hand Wash Duration and Lowers Infections with Vitalacy

QUEENS, N.Y., Sept. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Vitalacy, Inc. today announced a full hospital expansion of their automated hand hygiene monitoring program with St. Mary's Healthcare System for Children, a hospital focused on the care of children and families with special needs. After a successful six-month trial resulting in the doubling of hand wash duration and record low infection rates amid the pandemic, St. Mary's President and CEO, Dr. Edwin F. Simpser has approved the health and hygiene solution for the entire Healthcare System.

"St. Mary's is a global leader in pediatric post-acute care," said Dr. Simpser. "We believe innovation in healthcare is where the best possible outcomes can be achieved. Incorporating programs like the Vitalacy Automated Hand Hygiene Monitoring Solution gives St. Mary's kids a safer environment to heal and thrive." 

"The new possibilities automation brings to healthcare are astonishing," shared Bency Mathew, RN, MSN, DNS-CT, St. Mary's Assistant Vice President of Nursing Services and AVP for System quality, education and informatics. "We can objectively document, for example, the interactions between our patients and their caregivers and keep us informed about quality and safety process compliance like proper hand washing. Partnering with Vitalacy strengthens our safety mission." 

All caregivers wear a Vitalacy SmartBand. The solution uses bluetooth to monitor when a caregiver activates a soap or sanitizer dispenser. If they forget to hand wash before approaching a patient, a gentle vibration reminder helps them remember to do the right thing at the right time for the right amount of time. Using Vitalacy's automated technology and data reporting capabilities, St. Mary's can monitor hand wash compliance and purposeful rounding to ensure a positive culture of safety and help decrease the risk of exposure to infections.  

In addition to hand wash monitoring, the Vitalacy SmartBand has a built-in accelerometer to monitor hand wash duration. St. Mary's caregivers were able to increase wash duration by ten seconds in just weeks with real-time coaching reminders on the SmartBands. As the CDC states, keeping hands clean by washing for 20 seconds is one of the most important steps we can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. 

"St. Mary's is proud to partner with state-of-the-art technologies to promote a continuous care experience," stated Judith Fine, MSc, MPH, M (ASCP), CIC, Director of Infection Prevention at St. Mary's. "With this powerful combination of tools, our hospital has access to a wealth of hand hygiene compliance data to help us reach our quality goals and ensure a safe center of care for our kids."   

St. Mary's Wash Duration Case Study Link 

About St. Mary's Healthcare System for Children
St. Mary's Healthcare System for Children is committed to improving the health and quality of life for children and families with special needs. We are New York's largest and most experienced provider of long-term care to children with medically complex conditions and New York City's only post-acute care facility for children. At St. Mary's Healthcare System for Children, we aim to give our kids and their families more than they had dreamed possible.

About Vitalacy, Inc.
Vitalacy is a health and hygiene technology company focused on providing caregivers and patients with a safe and confident care experience through automation. Vitalacy monitors hand hygiene compliance with real-time reminders at point of care through smart sensors and wearables that improve outcomes and save lives.

CONTACT: Haley Dukelow, 714-486-9244, [email protected] 

SOURCE Vitalacy