EQ2 LLC Successfully Completes Interconnectivity Testing

EQ2 LLC, a supplier of hospital computerized maintenance and managementsystem (CMMS) software, announced that its HEMS software successfully completed five days of real-time integration and interoperability testing at the Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) Connectathon in Cleveland.

According to Jim Smith, president of EQ2, "It's now within reach for a multi-hospital organization to instantly know where their medical devices are, whether the device is attached to a patient, is in an alarm state, whether it requires a critical update or is under a pending safety alert, how often it is used and what it costs to support it. Along with the FDA's new federal Unique Device Identification (UDI) law, the IHE standards will enable healthcare to align disparate devices and systems into an efficient, safe and effective patient care delivery system. No more bunkered devices and systems - interoperability and standard messaging will rule."

The IHE Connectathon event stages and tests the interoperability of health IT systems for conformance to IHE Profiles (workflows) between products from medical equipment vendors, integrators, software providers and public health vendors. Tests are monitored by neutral IHE observers provided by AAMI, ACCE, NIST and others. The goal is to increase the effectiveness, safety and positive patient outcomes while lowering the cost of healthcare.

Vishal Malhotra, EQ2's director of technical development, notes, "EQ2 prepared for the Connectathon and our success in passing all submitted tests in several IHE Profiles is a testimony to our technical ability. To me, the Connectathon's real value was being able to work with the other great technical teams assembled on real world, interoperability work flow. This is the same workflow that will go-live at hospitals worldwide so this experience is invaluable to all companies."

EQ2 successfully connected to, and tested with, smart products from 15 medical equipment vendors including:

- Bernoulli Cardiopulmonary Corp: Real-time data sent from "smart" Bernoulli cardiopulmonary medical devices was collected, normalized and analyzed in the HEMS software.

- B. Braun's smart infusion pump delivered operating data to HEMS enabling data storage and analysis of pump use and operating statistics.

- Smiths Medical devices of various kinds were connected in real time to HEMS, enabling data storage analysis and processing for service, calibration, and providing use statistics.

- Hospira's IV Clinical Integration Solution is now available in their smart infusion pumps and interfaces in real time with HEMS.

- GUARD's RFID Solutions devices enabling a hospital to employ a Real-Time-Locating-System (RTLS) for its medical devices wherever they might be in the hospitals many rooms and laboratories.

Source: EQ2 LLC