Hackensack University Medical Center is now the first hospital in the nation to receive state approval to report microbiological clinical results using the bioMerieux VITEK® MS device.
"We are excited to be the first medical center in the nation approved to report such important clinical data obtained through the VITEK MS platform," said Robert C. Garrett, president and chief executive officer of Hackensack University Health Network. "HackensackUMC remains committed to staying at the forefront of new technology and treatment methods to better care for our patients, and the VITEK MS is another example of this commitment."
The VITEK MS is a revolutionary automated identification system for the healthcare industry. Using MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry technology and a database developed by bioMerieux for bacterial and fungal identification, the VITEK MS provides rapid and accurate identifications. Although it is used in other facilities across the country for research purposes, HackensackUMC pushed technology further by seeking approval from New Jersey Department of Health to be able to clinically report its lab results.
"The MALDI-TOF methodology incorporated into the VITEK MS platform truly reflects a quantum leap forward in terms of accurate and extremely timely micro-organism identification," said Ciaran Mannion, M.D., chair of the Department of Pathology at HackensackUMC.
"We are proud to house the VITEK MS device in our Microbiology Laboratory," said Tao Hong, Ph.D., chief of Microbiology and Molecular Diagnostics. "The device will not only dramatically cut the necessary time needed to receive results, but will also cut operating costs up to 70% compared to other traditional methods. This technology represents a significant advancement in the clinical management of infectious disease."