Patient Safety Movement Foundation Announces the Winners of the 2015 Innovation Awards

The Patient Safety Movement Foundation announced the 2015 winners of the Patient Safety Movement Innovation Award at the 2016 Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit held Jan. 22, 2016 in Dana Point, Calif. More than 60 patient safety entrepreneurs and innovators submitted their novel products and processes that are designed to help reach the goal of zero preventable patient deaths by the year 2020.

This is the first year of this competition and the goal was to receive a wide array of entries from a diverse group of stakeholders. The Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s Board of Directors selected three winners. First prize is $50,000 and was awarded to Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI). The second prize of $25,000 was awarded to Fitsi Health. The third prize of $10,000 was awarded to PrevenTreat.

“Congratulations to all of our winners,” says Joe Kiani, founder of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation. “We believe innovation is key to attaining zero patient deaths by 2020. We are constantly learning about unique solutions being used around the world that are improving patient safety and this award allows us to both support and share the details of these innovations.”

First prize winner: Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) introduced a solution that uses electronically controlled gravity feed (ECGF) infusion. Shock affects 10 percent of children admitted to African hospitals, of whom approximately 11 percent to 12 percent die, often within hours of admission. Studies have confirmed the detrimental effect of unsafe fluid bolus in young children with the most severe shock. The ECGF Infusion set add-on device, has been designed to significantly improve the efficacy of intravenous fluid and/or drug delivery especially to children under the age of five. It has the capability of accurately administering fluid and/or drugs by dynamically controlling the flow rate based on feedback from a drop sensor module. Additional features include safety, efficiency, ease of use and affordability.

Second prize winner: Fitsi Health introduced a hand hygiene solution. This solution was created by a nurse. It is a bedside caddy that gives patients easy access to hand sanitizer and a place to store personal items such as mobile phones, glasses and hearing aids. Its patented design attaches to hospital beds, is easily carried and stands upright on any flat surface. This solution helps reduce the risk of infections and patient falls, improves quality of care and saves healthcare workers time.

Third prize winner: PrevenTreat introduced a bed sore prevention system called Healthy Heels®. Heel Pressure Ulcers (HPU’s) are a preventable, but common wound that occurs in immobile or otherwise bedridden patients. HPU’s can be prevented if the patient’s heels are suspended continuously in the air with pressure transferred to the calf. Healthy Heels prevents and treats HPU’s through a patented bed sheet and pillow system. The revolutionary bed sheets have pockets sewn into the foot of the sheet to secure the pillows from moving as the patient sleeps. Their superior pillow then keeps the patient’s heels suspended indefinitely during rest. Proven 100 percent effective in test cases, PrevenTreat hopes to make Healthy Heels the industry standard for HPU prevention and the universal standard for healthcare bed linens.

Source: Patient Safety Movement Foundation