CDEX (Old)

[Viking65]

Utah Addresses Drug Diversion from OR
with New Analyzer

NurseNews e-zine
March 22, 2005

The University of Utah Hospital is one of the first in the country to tackle the problem of drug diversion at its source, with a new device that validates the contents of all returned narcotics from ORs.

Various studies have shown that 5% to 10% of anesthesiologists, nurses, and pharmacists have abused medications illegally by substituting saline or water for narcotics.

The shoebox-size device, called ValiMed, coupled with a proprietary library of chemical “fingerprints” and software, can help facilities document compliance with JCAHO standards for controlled substances, says maker CDEX, in Rockville, Md.

In seconds, the device provides a spectral analysis of the contents of returned syringes to ensure they contain narcotics, which “pretty much eliminates a major source of narcotic drug diversion,” says Jim Jorgenson, associate dean for clinical affairs, University of Utah College of Pharmacy.

He says the University of Utah’s Huntsman Cancer center also is launching a trial of the analyzer in its oncology department to ensure the accuracy of compounded chemotherapy injections.

Source:
http://nsweb.nursingspectrum.com/NurseNewsEzine/item.cfm?ID=1787