SanDance Technology Releases Web-based Service to Improve Patient Safety

Princeton, N.J.-based SanDance Technology LLC has launched Orthosecure, a web-based application service designed to improve the quality of joint replacement surgery while also increasing hospital efficiency. OrthoSecure reads the barcodes on implant box labels and prominently displays a standardized, user-friendly e.Label on an operating room monitor; automatically verifies that each part is compatible based on the patient’s needs and the manufacturer’s most recent instructions; and checks that to ensure that each part has not expired or been recalled. OrthoSecure can also reportedly streamline other hospital processes by transmitting scanned implant information to electronic medical records and inventory control systems.

While hospitals continue to focus on quality control measures, the selection of an incorrect implant still occurs at an unacceptable rate. A 2009 survey by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons found that 53 percent of the respondents had observed a medical error in the prior six months, and of those, 2.6 percent related to having the wrong implant. A recent study estimated that incorrect implant selection has led to annual wastage of hip and knee implants costs over $100 million in the United States alone. A major contributing factor in the occurrence of these errors is the size and formatting of the implant box label, which can often be difficult to read in the operating room. With OrthoSecure, SanDance hopes to eliminate the possibility that human error will cause an improper device to be selected for implantation.

Prior to its full launch in October 2013 at a major orthopedic hospital, OrthoSecure was tested with six high-volume knee replacement surgeons over a seven-month period. The results indicated an 85 percent decrease in wastage as compared to the control group.

“There is so much emphasis on two things in health care right now: reducing costs and improving quality,” said Steven Haas, M.D., M.P.H., chief of the knee service at The Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, N.Y., co-founder of SanDance and primary designer of OrthoSecure. “Most of the time, we think of those things as diametrically opposed, that we are going to decrease quality by saving money. OrthoSecure increases quality and reduces costs at the same time.”