VA Hospitals Using Xenex's UV Light Technology to Disinfect Rooms and Prevent Infections

Xenex Healthcare Services, a leader in ultraviolet (UV) room disinfection, announces that its portable room disinfection system was featured on VA News, a weekly video program designed to provide timely news and information about the Department of Veterans Affairs. A green technology that is mercury-free, Xenex offers a fast, safe, and most cost-effective method for the automated disinfection of healthcare facilities.

In an effort to achieve "zero" hospital acquired infections (HAIs) the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System (Central Texas VA System) is using Xenexs pulse xenon UV room disinfection system to eliminate the deadly microorganisms (MRSA, Clostridium difficile, VRE) that  cause infections. The Central Texas VA System launched Xenexs technology in October 2012, and the resulting story recently appeared on VA News. Central Texas VA System was one of the first national VA systems to deploy Xenex throughout its acute care facilities. The VA News program can be viewed online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaTWtPhd8p4&list=SP20532C6A043CC0F5

Xenexs room disinfection system uses pulse xenon UV light to destroy viruses, bacteria and bacterial spores in the patient environment without contact or chemicals. Designed for ease of use and portability, a hospitals environmental services staff can operate Xenex without disrupting hospital operations or requiring the use of expensive chemicals. The Xenex system will disinfect more than 35 rooms per day, so hospitals use the system continuously to reduce contamination levels throughout their facilities.

In the VA News segment, Dr. Chetan Jinadatha, Central Texas VA System chief of infectious disease, discussed the VAs initiative and how Xenex is being deployed at the Central Texas VA facility. This technology is so innovative and important. It kills reliably every time, says Jinadatha.

The VA hospitals are committed to eliminating HAIs and creating a safer, more effective VA healthcare system. We hope that this VA News feature will educate other VA facilities about our pulse xenon UV light technology and how it can make their environment cleaner, says Mark Stibich, chief scientific officer of Xenex. Xenex devices have been proven to reduce HAIs and hospitals using our technology are experiencing fewer infections. We are thrilled that the Central Texas VA is being recognized for its innovation in patient safety. 

Jinadatha presented the results of an initial study performed at Central Texas VA System Evaluation of a Pulse-Xenon Ultraviolet Room Disinfection Device for Impact on Contamination Levels of MRSA at IDWeek, the combined meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA), and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS).

Xenex systems are made in the U.S., and are friendlier to the environment than current housecleaning chemicals or UV systems using toxic mercury. Xenex is the only company to offer a xenon-based room disinfection product that is patented, tested, and proven to deliver a germicidal dose of UV-C light capable of killing C. diff in four minutes or less.

Xenex has been proven to be effective against a variety of the most dangerous superbugs, including C. diff endospores, MRSA, VRE, and Acinetobacter. Studies show the Xenex room disinfection system is consistently 20 times more effective than standard chemical cleaning practices. Xenexs customer Cooley Dickinson Hospital reported 67 percent lower C. diff rates and 100 percent lower C. diff deaths and colectomy rates since adoption of Xenexs room disinfection system in January 2011. Other customers reporting positive results from their usage of Xenexs room disinfection system include Houstons MD Anderson Cancer Center, the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, and Cone Health System in North Carolina, which reduced its number of MRSA infections 58 percent in 2011.