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For
immediate release March
31, 2000
Sharon Regional Health System installs pharmacy ROBOT-Rx
Sharon Regional Health System reinforced its commitment to quality care recently
by becoming the first hospital in the region to acquire a state- of-the-art pharmacy
robotics system that utilizes bar code technology to automate the dispensing and
delivery of inpatient medications.
The ROBOT-Rx, manufactured by McKessonHBOC Automated Healthcare, will be
used to dispense and deliver more than 90,000 doses per month at Sharon Regional.
The system is widely recognized in the healthcare industry for its accuracy in
the prevention of medication errors. Hospitals using the robotic system have also
achieved reduced inventory and labor costs, resulting in significant savings.
Sharon Regional's President and CEO Wayne Johnston says, "We are committed
to insuring our patients have access to the newest technologies. Acquiring this
system sets new standards of care by giving our patients access to the most advanced
capabilities in hospital medication administration available in the country."
According to Joyce Yager, R.Ph., FASCP, director of pharmacy services,
the technology demonstrates Sharon Regional's commitment to quality of care by
ensuring patient safety and improving efficiency in the drug distribution process.
"Patient safety is our number one priority," says Yager. "This system allows us
to proactively minimize the possibility of medication errors and puts pharmacists
on the floor with the patients rather than involving them in medication dispensing
tasks."
ROBOT-Rx offers all medications in unit dose, bar coded packages that contain
medication specific information such as generic/brand name, expiration date and
lot number. Accuracy and safety are greatly increased with bar coding due to uniformed
labeling and compatibility with point-of- care systems. Compared to a manual picking
system, the ROBOT-Rx is virtually error-free in dispensing medications.
McKessonHBOC Automated Healthcare is a Pittsburgh-based firm that manufactures
and markets pharmacy automation systems that help hospitals reengineer their medication
use process to improve cost savings and increase the quality of care.
