Inviro Medical Launches InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe in North American Market

ATLANTA -- Healthcare workers in the United States and Canada now have access to enhanced infection control and protection from needlestick injuries as Inviro Medical today launches the InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe. Backed by years of research, this patented syringe is designed to provide distinct protection and performance advantages to address an estimated 1 million accidental injuries that occur each year. Such incidents expose nurses and healthcare personnel to infection risks from diseases including hepatitis and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).

The InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe creates a significant new segment -- manually retractable technology -- in the safety syringe market. "Unlike most safety syringes that are retro-fitted with add-on pieces, our product was created with the safety feature integral to the design," says Gareth Clarke, CEO of Inviro Medical.

The InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe looks and functions like a traditional syringe and is designed to be easy to use. With hand and fingers safely positioned behind the needle, the clinician administers the dose, pulls the plunger back -- causing the needle to retract inside the barrel -- and snaps off the plunger, permanently disabling the device.

"Push, pull, snap -- it's that simple to operate," says Sandra Dudziak, a clinical nurse specialist/nurse practitioner of Central Care Corporation, Canada's leading long-term care chain and a recent convert to the InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe. "It's intuitive to use with minimal training, and the caregiver has peace of mind that it doesn't interfere with quality of care or patient comfort." The InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe also delivers an accurate dose with minimal medication waste. In addition, because the needle retracts into the barrel, the syringe decreases the risk of injury after the injection, reduces the volume of medical waste, improves infection control and lowers related disposal costs.

Although use of safety syringes was mandated in the U.S. six years ago, findings from the 2006 Study of Needlestick Injuries and Safety Devices, an independent nationwide study of directors of infection control and nurses, reveal that needlestick injuries continue to be a major concern and affect the vast majority of nurses. Some 64 percent of U.S. nurses responding to the survey had been accidentally stuck by a needle, and 47 percent had been stuck by a contaminated needle. In addition, more than 96 percent of survey respondents believe there is room for improvement in the design of current safety syringes. This study can be downloaded at: www.inviromedical.com/needlestickstudy.

"Research confirms that, despite progress made since the passing of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act, there is a clear need for improved safety syringes," says Clarke. "With the launch of our InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe, we address those areas for improvement in safety syringe design identified by healthcare personnel in the 2006 survey."

During a recent roundtable event, "The Inviro Initiative: Evaluating the State of Needlestick Prevention," held during the annual meeting of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), nursing and infection control thought leaders specifically identified crucial factors that could further diminish needlestick injuries including better safety syringe design. They deemed retro-fitted devices, which include the addition of safeguards to the original syringe, as cumbersome or difficult to operate, and suggested designing a syringe from scratch with input from those who use it. The InviroSNAP! Safety Syringe design was invented by a nurse!

As Inviro Medical breaks into the $1.6 billion safety syringe global market, the company has secured endorsements from HealthShare/Texas Hospital Association and Oklahoma Hospital Association Preferred Savings Network. These organizations serve nearly 700 hospitals and healthcare facilities. In addition, the company is working with the Victorian Order of Nurses in Canada to train the nation's institutional staff and public health department healthcare workers to use the easy-to-operate device.

The company's new products are components of The Inviro Safety System, which includes a comprehensive line of safety syringes and needleless access devices that replace conventional syringes. The safety syringes feature fixed needle, (insulin and 1ml to 5ml) and luer lock exchangeable combinations (3ml -10ml). The InviroSNAP! Luer Lock Safety Syringe also may be used with the InviroLINK Vial Access Plastic Cannula.

Source: Inviro Medical