Simplivia Blog

Healthcare providers are continuously challenged to provide safe and accurate chemotherapy preparations. Automated chemotherapy systems empower pharmacists and technicians with tools to improve the compounding process by making it shorter and more reliable, and by reducing the occurrence of medication misidentification and dosage quantity errors.

Veterinarians routinely face the risk of direct exposure to hazardous drugs. This can occur when treating house pets or large animals with veterinary pharmaceuticals, including antineoplastic and other hazardous drugs. Exposure can occur at all stages of treatment from compounding to administration as well as disposing of drug residue. Chemfort^® CSTD products provide safety by minimizing the exposure of veterinarians, veterinary staff, and animal owners to hazardous drugs.

There's no question that healthcare wouldn't be the same without nurses. In the field of oncology, nurses play a vital role in caring for patients and their families. Cancer care in the COVID-19 era has presented oncology nurses with even more challenges, and healthcare will only continue to evolve in new ways after the pandemic. Here are a few trends in oncology nursing that are here to stay.

Healthcare professionals such as pharmacists, oncology nurses and veterinarians need to protect themselves when they work or come into contact with hazardous drugs. Closed-system drug-transfer devices (CSTDs) help healthcare professional reduce the risk of this occupational exposure. Working with a CSTD requires medical professionals to understand how these innovative systems works. Consider some common questions about CSTDs.

Hospital administrators have a key role in overseeing the organizational side of hospitals and medical facilities. Hospital administrators must ensure that their facility is using the most efficient and effective practices to provide optimal healthcare. Lean management principles are five steps that hospital administrators can use to improve workplace efficiency. These steps create a framework for efficient workflow.

Healthcare professionals must sometimes deliver patient treatments that include hazardous drugs such as monoclonal antibodies and chemotherapy medications. These drugs can save patient lives, but can also affect the health status of others. Drug leaks also put patients, healthcare professionals and the environment at risk through potential exposure.

Hazardous drug exposure can cause dire health effects for nurses and other healthcare workers—including fertility problems, miscarriages, and cancer. Research shows that in Europe and in the US, exposure to toxic drugs happens to more than 20 million healthcare workers every year, and over 7 million of them are nurses. Fortunately, closed administration systems provide an effective solution to the risks nurses face every day.

When it comes to engineering controls, CSTDs are an integral part of the CDC's recommendations for reducing occupational risk. According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), CSTDs should be used throughout the entire process of compounding and administrating hazardous drugs.

Establishing systems to reduce hazardous drug exposure in healthcare settings ensures protection for those who routinely work with these drugs. Medical facilities need to examine which hazards are present in their environment and develop effective and innovative ways to mitigate exposure risks. Consider some of the following methods to promote safe handling of hazardous drugs.

For nurses and other healthcare professionals, the risk of exposure to hazardous drugs is genuine. About 8 million healthcare workers in the US alone are routinely exposed to cytotoxic drugs in the workplace. This exposure carries many potential health risks ranging from skin rashes to cancer. Closed system drug-transfer devices (CSTDs) are a key measure that helps protect nurses and other healthcare professionals at risk of hazardous drug exposure. Consider these common questions asked by nurses regarding CSTD use.

Closed system drug-transfer devices (CSTDs) can reduce the number of SKUs needed for drug handling protocols. They can also keep your medications sterile and thereby useable for longer. In addition, they protect healthcare staff and enable compliance with relevant regulations and guidelines. Let’s take a closer look at how consistent use of CSTDs can provide meaningful cost efficiencies.

Hazardous drugs are an ever-present and sometimes invisible threat to the health of nurses.Exposure to hazardous drugs can have significant negative side effects, including skin rashes, genetic damage, reproductive health issues and cancer. Safe handling of hazardous drugs is a key method of reducing health risks for clinical and non-clinical personnel. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) provides employer guidelines on how to minimize hazardous drug risks with set protocols and personal protective equipment (PPE).