A Medical Device Daily

Maquet Cardiovascular (Wayne, New Jersey) a provider of cardiovascular technologies reported that it has signed a guaranteed two-year contract with Novation, (Irving Texas) to be the sole source provider of surgical devices for beating heart cardiac surgery.

Under the terms of the agreement, which runs through Oct. 31, 2012, Maquet Cardiovascular will be the exclusive provider of beating heart devices and disposable supplies to the members of VHA (Irving, Texas) and University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC; Oak Brook, Illinois). Those members will now have access to all of Maquet's beating heart products, including the industry-leading ACROBAT stabilizer system and the HeartString Proximal Seal System.

In other agreements/contracts:

• BK Medical (Peabody, Massachusetts) a developer of medical ultrasound has signed a new three-year product-line agreement with MedAssets Supply Chain Systems (Alpharetta, Georgia). This agreement enables BK Medical's urological and surgical ultrasound systems, related accessories, and supplies to be available to more than 1,700 MedAssets healthcare provider customers who utilize the MedAssets group purchasing organization (GPO) services.

MedAssets' customers will have access to the new Flex Focus, the latest in the Focus family series of ultrasound scanners.

Features of the Flex Focus include a 19-inch LCD high-definition monitor that houses the actual scanning unit, making it the mobile solution for sophisticated ultrasound needs.

The Flex Focus can be easily docked in several different configurations and its 14-inch width means it can fit into virtually any clinical setting, even smaller, private practice offices. Its 19–inch LCD monitor is positioned vertically on the scanning unit, making it possible to view two large biplane images simultaneously without compromising ultrasound image size.

• InterSystems (Cambridge, Massachusetts) reported that AssistMed (Beverly Hills, California) has chosen the InterSystems Ensemble rapid integration and development platform to provide integration capability for its AssistMed EHR. The easy-to-use, CCHIT-certified AssistMed EHR is a major component of Clinication, Duet and Orchestra, AssistMed's integrated SaaS product offerings.

InterSystems develops innovative integration, database and business intelligence products. Ensemble is used to develop and integrate mission-critical applications, leverage previous software investments through composite applications, and establish an enterprise service bus or SOA infrastructure. An InterSystems application partner, AssistMed develops and markets a family of easy-to-use healthcare applications targeting healthcare providers countrywide.

• Click Commerce (Beaverton, Oregon) reported that the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) will use the company's eResearch Portal software to fully automate a variety of research administration and compliance processes, including those associated with Institutional Review Board (IRB), Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), and Conflict of Interest (COI). The new system provides researchers with a single platform and interface for functions that now require separate paper processes as well as duplication of effort.

The initial implementation will provide full lifecycle support of COI disclosures for both researchers and institutional officials from initial submission and modifications to annual review.

• Excelsior Medical (Brentwood, Tennessee) has achieved a milestone with the signing of a national contract with HealthTrust Purchasing Group (HealthTrust; also Brentwood). The agreement provides the HealthTrust group purchasing membership with access to saline and heparin pre-filled flush syringes. The contract went into effect on Nov. 1.

Excelsior's ZR pre-filled flush syringes are filled with saline or heparin in an FDA-registered, cGMP controlled clean room. The syringes, which are 100% steam terminally sterilized, labeled and packaged in ready-to-use, unit-dose packages, are designed to minimize syringe-generated reflux. Reflux can cause catheter occlusions – a troublesome complication of long-term catheter use.

The company's syringe technology features a smooth plunger glide, enhanced labels designed to lower the risk of a medication error and syringe clarity to allow for improved visual inspection of the solution. The syringes are bar-coded to speed inventory control and minimize medical errors.