Cartersville Medical Center Unveils Xenex Germ-Zapping Robot

From Cartersville Medical Center:

Cartersville, GA - As hospitals around the world look for new and innovative ways to battle deadly pathogens and kill multi-drug resistant organisms that can cause Hospital Acquired Infections (HAI), Cartersville Medical Center has taken a leap into the future with the installation of a LightStrike™ Germ-Zapping Robot™ that destroys hard-to-kill bugs in hard-to-clean places.

The Xenex robot uses Full Spectrum™ pulsed xenon ultraviolet (UV) light to quickly destroy bacteria, viruses, fungi and bacterial spores. The portable disinfection system is effective against even the most dangerous pathogens, including Clostridium difficile (C. diff), norovirus, influenza, Ebola and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, better known as MRSA.

“We want to do everything within our means to provide a clean environment at our facility to reduce the risk of hospital acquired infections,” said Lori Rakes, chief operating officer. “Cartersville Medical Center has long been recognized as a leader in medical technology and highly specialized care, so it’s only fitting that we should employ the same level of technological innovation when it comes to removing the pathogens that can cause these infections. One hospital acquired infection is one too many, so we are excited to begin using the Xenex system to help us achieve our goal of zero infections. This investment is important and underscores our commitment to patient care and the communities we serve.”

UV has been used for disinfection for decades. The Xenex LightStrike™ Germ-Zapping Robot is a new technology that utilizes pulsed xenon (not mercury bulbs) to create germicidal UV light. Pulsed xenon emits high intensity UVC light which penetrates the cell walls of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, mold, fungus and spores. Their DNA is fused, rendering them unable to reproduce or mutate, effectively killing them on surfaces without contact or chemicals. The Xenex system is effective against the most dangerous pathogens, including Clostridium difficile (C. diff), Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), VRE, Ebola, norovirus and influenza.

The portable Xenex system can disinfect a typical patient or procedure room in four or five minute cycles (depending on the robot model) without warm-up or cool-down times. It can be used in any department and in any unit within a healthcare facility, including isolation rooms, operating rooms, general patient care rooms, contact precaution areas, emergency rooms, bathrooms and public spaces.

The Xenex pulsed xenon UV disinfection system has been credited by health care facilities across the U.S. for helping them reduce their infection rates significantly. Several hospitals have published their C.diff, MRSA and Surgical Site infection rate reduction studies in peer-reviewed journals - showing infection rate reductions in excess of 70 percent. More than 350 hospitals, Veterans Affairs and DoD facilities in the U.S., Canada, Africa, UK and Europe are using Xenex robots, which are also in use in skilled nursing facilities, ambulatory surgery centers and long term acute care facilities.

About Xenex Disinfection Services
Xenex's patented Full SpectrumTM pulsed xenon UV room disinfection system is used for the advanced disinfection of healthcare facilities. Due to its speed and ease of use, the Xenex system has proven to integrate smoothly into hospital cleaning operations. Xenex’s mission is to save lives and reduce suffering by eliminating the deadly microorganisms that cause hospital acquired infections (HAIs). The company is backed by well-known investors that include Malin Corporation, Battery Ventures, Targeted Technology Fund II and RK Ventures. For more information, visit Xenex.com.

About Cartersville Medical Center
Cartersville Medical Center is a 112-bed acute care hospital, Chest Pain Center, Certified Primary Stroke Center, Certified Total Joint program and Gold Seal Inpatient Diabetes program accredited by the Joint Commission. The Breast Imaging Center of Excellence at The Women’s Center provides mammography services that are gold seal accredited by the American College of Radiology. The Hope Center, a regional, Commission on Cancer approved cancer treatment facility, is conveniently located on the hospital campus and provides over 4,000 treatments with over 300 new patients per year from a ten county region.

For more information about programs and services offered at Cartersville Medical Center or The Hope Center, call MedLine at (800) 242-5662 or visit here.

Photo via Cartersville Medical Center: Xenex LightStrike™ Robot