Middle East Hospital June 2010

Saudi Arabia is the largest and therichest of the Gulf States. It hasbuilt one of the best and mostcomprehensive healthcare sys-tems in Middle East.

In Saudi the leading indicators ofdeath rates are amongst the low-est in world, and a life expectancyof around 73 is well above aver-age by global standards. Theplanned projects for the next 5years mean that for the foresee-able future the Kingdom will con-tinue to dominate the Middle Eastmarket for medical equipment,medical supplies, consumablesand pharmaceuticals.

The spend on healthcare over thenext 15 years is estimated to be inexcess of US$80 billion as thepopulation increase from 26 mil-lion to almost 50 million by 2020,being served by over 500 hospi-tals and over 2000 medical facili-ties throughout the Kingdom. TheSaudi market for medical devicesis the largest in the Middle Eastand is estimated to be expandingat a rate of 4.9% per annum, toreach US$858 million by 2012.

In this issue we review the rapidlydeveloping Saudi health care sys-tem, and look at its future growth. There is an exclusive article by re-spected healthcare consultant DrPeter Briggs, who contrasts the vi-tality of the Saudi healthcare sys-tem with that of the rapidly agingUK, which now faces severe fi-nancial pressure as the new gov-ernment try to tackle thepost-recession deficit.

Guy Rowland, Editor

Editor’s Introduction

The Arab Hospital Middle East Hospital

Specalist article: Health -can we afford it, by Dr PeterBriggs of Health Audit Inter-national, pg 4-5

Kimal and the NxStage:

featuring the rejuvination ofhome dialysis in the UK, byDr RN Greenwood, pg 6-9

Saudi Arabia Healthcare

Review: an in depth look atthe region’s largest health-care economy, pg 10-12

Algeos: the Diaped range ofsolutions for the multidiscipli-nay diabetic foot clinicpg 14-15

Medibord: multi-award win-ning radiotherapy material forpatient positioning boards, pg16-17

Mirage Health Group:

ear care specialists- the Pro-pulse NG ear irrigation sys-tem, pg 18-19

HCL International:

recruiting healthcare profes-sionals for the Middle East re-

gion, pg 22-23

NuTec Medical:

the Paraskate range, pg 25

BD Diagnostics: a leadingprovider of products for thesafe collection and transport ofdiagnostics specimenspg 26-27

June 2010 contents

June 2010 | 3

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabiais in a blessed position when itcomes to affording effectivehealth care. It has a growingeconomy, a young populationand time to plan for the in-evitable diseases of old agethat dominate westerneconomies.

The UK’s newly elected gov-ernment is pledged to reducethe country’s financial deficit.By contrast the situation inSaudi Arabia is more positivewith a commitment to growththrough diversity. In the UKthe only protected budgets arehealth and overseas aid.

Health spend will neverthelesscome under increasing pres-sure with population growth,improved technology, newdrugs, increased public expec-tations and of course – anageing population.

In the UK the new coalitiongovernment’s health approachis for improved efficiency. Itwants fewer quangos, lessmanagers, less bureaucracy. Itwants to raise the retirementage to 66 years, impose strin-gent criteria for sickness benfitand greater co-operation be-tween health and local author-ities.

Rationalisation of hospitalservices will inevitablyemerge. London has too manyhospitals as have some other

cities. Cancer services cannotbe dealt with at every hospital,dedicated trauma centresneed larger catchment popula-tions for optimum expertise,Heart attack patients need im-mediate coronary artery by-pass grafts which not everyhospital can sensibly offer.

However the biggest cost sav-ings are the development ofsimplified patient care path-ways, optimum use of day sur-gery, more minimally invasive(keyhole) surgery and most ofall a shifting of follow up careto the community.

Health – Can We Afford It? by Dr Peter Briggs

Middle East HospitalThe Arab Hospital

June 2010 | 4

HAI profile

Health Audit International(HAI) was established in1990 by Peter Briggs, a for-mer consultant in publichealth medicine in the UK.HAI takes a particular in in-terest in health strategies forcommunities and individualspecialties allied with qualityand outcome measures.

Having attended Arab Healthin 2010 HAI is particularly in-terested in working withclients in the region. WhilstMiddle East economies aredoing reasonably well thereis little doubt that, like theirwestern counterparts,achieving value for money inhealth is going to become in-creasingly important. HAI of-fers short term consultancyfor population health needs,hospital strategies, individualspecialties. Research hasbeen undertaken in manysuch areas so that the primeneed is to assess the localsituation and meet key par-ties prior to putting togetherconsidered proposals.

Recent work has been un-dertaken in Wales (popula-tion 3.0m) developing qualityand outcome measures forsome 60 sub regional spe-cialties and conditions. Cur-rently HAI is assisting a largeteaching hospital in Nigeriaon clinical governance im-provement.See: www.health-audit.com


June 2010 | 5

Most medical care is a pro-vided by a series of clinicalpathways for individual condi-tions or procedures – hun-dreds of them. Many suchpathways involve complicatedand unnecessary interven-tions, innumerable hospitalvisits, laboratory and othertests. ‘Simplified’ clinical path-ways are the key to lowercosts.

These involve reducing wasteand promoting efficiency bystreamlining processes andeliminating waste across thewhole patient pathway. It canbe done, but not from the topdownwards. We need to em-power staff and give them in-centives.

By empowering staff we meanclinicians. Many do not want tobe involved in management –by contrast some of them arebrilliant and have an ability totake their colleagues withthem. Give them budgets forkey service areas like medi-cine, surgery, orthopaedics,maternity, paediatrics, casu-alty, renal, cancers. We allwant improved quality and bet-ter outcomes but not at anyprice.

Whatever health systems arein place nationally cliniciansmust be told what their serv-ices cost compared with else-where and given theresponsibility for managingsuch costs.

The public is increasingly mo-bile aided by the internet andreduced cost air travel. Tooth

implants in the UK are prohib-itively expensive but every-body knows a cheap flight toEastern Europe will get youthe same at a fraction of theprice. India is getting muchmore competitive with heartsurgery costs – again flightcosts are no bar.

Local rates of pay are a keyfactor but how care is deliv-ered in terms of treatmentpathways is increasingly rele-vant. Following up your patientvia the internet or telephone isa key plus point which nursesor co-ordinators can do verycost effectively.

Home based care using mod-ern technology is the new fron-tier with the ability to monitor aperson’s blood pressure, heartrate/rhythm, blood glucose,breathing problems, even de-mentia much more cheaplythan via repeated out-patientappointments.

Such appointments cost a hos-pital a lot of money quite apartfrom taking up half a day of apatient’s time. Several firmsare developing home caretechnology including Philips,GEC, Kaiser Permanente andothers.

Keeping health costs undercontrol requires innovativemanagement, new ideas andclinician involvement.

Dr Peter Briggs

Director, Health Audit Int Ltd,www.health-audit.com

June 2010 | 6

Kimal develops, manufactures,markets and distributes innovativemedical device technology acrossthe UK and International health-care markets. Their extensiverange comprises products for di-agnostic and interventional cardi-ology, radiology, renal diseaseand oncology. They are a premierprovider of customised proceduralsolutions, being market leaders inover 12 countries.

NxStage System One™

At Arab Health 2010 last JanuaryKimal introduced an exciting inno-vation which is expected to trans-form the lives of haemodialysispatients across the Middle East.The NxStage System One™home haemodialysis machinewas unveiled by the leading sur-geon and former UK Governmentminister for health , Lord Darzi.The NxStage also picked up anMEH health and innovation awardfor most innovative product for ex-port, with Kimal taking the awardfor British-Middle East exporter ofthe year.

The NxStage System One™,which is only 41 inches high and20 inches wide, is being intro-duced into the Middle East on atargeted basis by Kimal. The com-pany will initially focus on two keyareas in the region, namely SaudiArabia and the United Arab Emi-rates itself. Kimal is keen to en-sure that these two key areas arefully covered off and benefit fromexcellent quality of practical andclinical support before extendingfurther afield in the region, possi-bly in early 2011.

It is reported that by 2010 therewill be 2 million patients worldwiderequiring ‘End Stage Renal Dis-ease’ treatment. In the MiddleEast, there are presently over100,000 patients requiringhaemodialysis treatment, includ-ing over 1900 in the UAE alone.

UAE treatment needs are increas-ing by 15 - 20% each year. Fac-tors behind this rise include theageing population, increase inobesity and lack of donor organs. Patients currently have to travel toand from hospital-based renalcentres many times a week to re-ceive treatment. With the newNxStage treatment programme,patients will spend a relativelyshort time being trained on selfdialysis in their renal centre. Uponcompletion of the training, theycan take the system home and, asthe machine is portable, they canpotentially go on holiday withNxStage!

Kimal has a number of patients inthe UK successfully using ‘NxStage System One™’ at home.Kimal Corporate Marketing Man-ager, Ken Findlay, says: “Their

Special feature: Kimal and the NxStage


Brian Deane, Martin Bailey, Alan Pressand Neil Deane with MEH awards

June 2010 | 7

lives have been transformed bybeing able to dialyse at home. Pa-tients comment that they enjoy afuller life, socialise more withfriends and family and, impor-tantly, feel so much better andenjoy a greater zest for life!”

Mr. Findlay adds: “This new gen-eration of technology has not onlyreduced the dialysis machine tothe size of a portable TV or table-top sewing machine, but the boxit sits on actually converts ordi-nary tap water into the liquiddialysate needed to carry out thetreatment, massively reducing thestorage requirement, thus makingthe whole process truly userfriendly.”

Company profile

Kimal has being operating verysuccessfully in the internationalarena for nearly 30 years, havingachieved particular successes inEurope, the Middle East and theNordic Region. Their recent globalstrategy has been to successfullyconsolidate existing markets, atthe same time developing newprotocols to tackle new opportuni-ties.

From their humble beginningsin the early 1960’s based inUxbridge, just outside Londonworking in laboratory productsand then in cardiology to thepresent day with a multi divi-sional, multi site, multi special-ity complex organisation, thestrong core ethics of Kimalcontinue to this day.

In the 1960 ‘s Kimal introducedCordis and Cook into the UK mar-ket as well introducing the first im-plantable pacemaker to its localmarket. More UK innovations con-tinued throughout the following 40or so years including launchingthe UK’s first peel way sheath in-troducer and bringing the firstcathlab procedure pack.

As the company’s domestic oper-ation went from strength tostrength, the company started tospread its international position.One of its first global adventureswas expansion into the MiddleEast market almost 30 years ago,a market which has grown signifi-cantly year on year to the positionwhere Kimal opened a local officein the United Arab Emirates in2001 and now has a dedicatedteam running the ME operation -a team who continually bring suc-cess to the company.

Benefits of the NxStage System One™ include:

-Less disruption to patient’s normal life-The freeing up of hospital beds and medical staff-Patients do not have to build additional domestic infrastructure toinstall the machine-No travelling to and from hospital/clinic with consequent journeystress-Ability for patient to dialyse at convenient time in a familiar familyenvironment-An increase in frequency of treatment; typically 3 times per weekin clinic compared to home haemodialysis which allows for everyday and fewer hours


It was a little over 30 years agothat Kimal first started supplyingmedical devices for hospitals inSaudi Arabia. Their initial workwas the dialysis tender for theSaudi Ministry of Health.

Alan Press, Kimal’s Chief Execu-tive told MEH, “It was during theearly 1980’s when I made my firstvisit to introduce the critical carerange of catheters from Arrow In-ternational. I remember initiallyshowing one anaesthetist at KingFaisal Specialist Hospital inRiyadh a product for regionalanaesthesia and within twentyminutes or so being surroundedby anaesthetists and surgeonswho had cleared the theatres! Weat Kimal are proud that workingwith our great friend, Dr. IsmailAhmed, Kimal were one of thefounding partners in the formationof Gulf Medical in Jeddah in 1983.This is a relationship that has con-tinued to be strong since thattime.”

Mr Press added, “From thoseearly days when my colleagueTim Proger used to travel all overthe Kingdom working closely withthe growing number of dialysisunits, our business has continuedto grow. All the sales teams ofGulf Medical had mandatory clini-cal and sales training in the UK -one of the reasons we believe thatfrom the early days, Gulf Medicalcould offer quality support to theirclinical customers. This is some-thing that Dr. Ismail talks about to

this day and the latest batch ofnewcomers are being trained inAugust 2010. Today, we serveGulf Medical and our customers inKSA from our office, which we es-tablished 10 years ago, in theUAE.”

Dr. Ismail Ahmed, Founder andManaging Director of Gulf Med-ical, told MEH, “Gulf Medical’s re-lationship with Kimal goes backsince its establishment in 1983. Itis the first and most influentialpartnership we had with an inter-national supplier. But, more im-portantly, my personal relationshipwith the Press family goes backeven further. I believe that it is atrue model of how a perfect busi-ness partnership should be. Dur-ing nearly 30 years of partnershipwe enjoyed excellent support,

transparency, exchange of knowl-edge, commitment, and most im-portantly the greatest offriendships.”

Dr Ahmed continued, “I still haveseveral memories of various tripswe conducted to promote ourbusiness when both of our com-panies where still in their infancy.I personally traveled several timesall over the Kingdom of Saudi Ar-baia to several remote areas in-cluding Khamees Mushayt,Jazan, and Al Hada to promotethe disposable dialysis businesswith Tim Proger and the cardiol-ogy and critical care disposablebusiness with Alan Press. At thattime our business together was$50k per year which has growngradually year by year to exceed$4 million.“Our partnership with Kimal con-tributed very positively during theyears to the ongoing successstory of Gulf Medical to eventuallybecome the leading medical de-vices company in the GCC andentire Middle East and I anticipatemore success stories to come inthe recent future for both of ourcompanies.”

June 2010 | 8


Kimal and Gulf Medical:

Doing business in Saudi Arabiafor 30 years

June 2010 | 9


Haemodialysis has been estab-lished as a treatment for patientswith renal failure for over 40years, 3x4hr sessions weeklybeing the normal experience forthe majority. It is increasinglyrecognised, however, that this is aminimalist approach which haslimited impact on quality of lifeand survival. More frequent treat-ment can deliver much more dial-ysis and impressiveimprovements in wellbeing arebeing reported. For a number ofreasons frequent dialysis is mostpractically carried out by patientson home haemodialysis (HHD).

In the UK, the National Institute ofClinical Excellence (NICE), abody which advises the NHSabout the efficacy of new thera-pies, produced a guideline (2002)which envisaged up to 15% HDpatients undertaking HHD. Thishas not been achieved. One ofthe barriers is the inability of self-caring patients to travel usingstandard machines. A further dif-ficulty has been the capital costsof converting a patient’s home.NxStage in the US have designeda dialysis machine specifically forhome use and travel.

The NxStage System 0ne is asmall compact dialysis systemwhich employs a simple keypadoperation and a “drop in” cartridgeto replace the complex blood tub-ing setup found on traditional ma-chines. The system which isdesigned for 5 or 6 ‘short’ HD ses-

sions weekly uses pre-preparedbags of dialysis solution or pro-duces batches of sterile fluid fromthe domestic cold water supply.The machine has been in clinicaluse in the USA since 2006 andthere are currently over 5000 pa-tients using the system.

Kimal, a UK company, workedwith NxStage and Dr RogerGreenwood, a nephrologist at Lis-ter Renal Unit (LRU) in Stevenageto bring this system into the UK.Four patients were trained onNxStage beween July and No-vember 2009. All four weretrained within 28 days with excel-lent clinical outcome and patientsatisfaction. There were signifi-cant benefits in blood pressurecontrol and sense of wellbeing inall patients, 2 of whom dialyse 5xweekly and 2 dialyse 6x weekly.

Following this initial ‘pilot’ thecosts of training people for fre-quent treatment had to be justifiedto the host NHS trust and com-missioners. Projected savings inpathology, pharmacy, travel and

holiday dialysis were considered.Higher disposables and machinelease costs were more than offsetby projected savings in staffingand by deferring the capital andrunning costs of new renal units.

Unfortunately re-imbursementhas fossilised around standard 3xweekly in-centre HD and HHDhas always been regarded as thecheaper option and has been re-munerated as such. While weshowed that frequent dialysis isaffordable to the NHS we need toencourage commissioners to setreimbursement levels which actu-ally incentivize HHD.

NxStage is proving a popularchoice among new patients andthose currently on dialysis whowish to become independent andfree to travel. Being ‘custom-de-signed’ for the job this device islikely to be a major catalyst in re-juvenating self-care.

Author: Dr R N Greenwood, Con-

sultant Nephrologist, Lister Hospi-

tal, Stevenage

NxStage in the UK:The Rejuvenation of Home Dialysis –Clinical and Financial Considerations

The Arab Hospital

June 2010 | 10

Health is regarded by the Saudigovernment as a key part of theoverall development of the coun-try. The mission of the Ministry ofHealth (MOH) is: “The provision ofcomprehensive health care com-prising preventative, curative andrehabilitative components com-mensurate with the Saudi Arabianculture, health ethics, citizens ap-proval and having equitably dis-tributed health services in additionto taking care of the health per-sonnel in a means that will influ-ence an acceptableperformance”.

Free curative primary care serv-ices are available in 1925 primaryhealth care (PHC) units acrossthe country, and about 83% ofpublic sector attendances occur inPHC clinics. Family medicine iscurrently being developed as aclinical specialty, and ‘mini-clinics’have been established for chronicdisease care. Oversight, quality ofcare, and management of allMOH services is carried out by 20Regional Health Affairs Direc-torates, under the MOH.

Most secondary care is providedat district level in 220 general hos-pitals. Specialist public sector andprivate hospitals are growing innumber and are available in themajor cities; public sector hospi-tals absorb around 60% of theMinistry of Health budget. Thetraditional role of the MOH is likelyto change, as it is currently exam-ining options for increasing themanagerial independence of pub-

lic sector hospitals as part of ageneral move towards the MOHbeing a purchaser of services,with responsibility for overall pol-icy and monitoring of perform-ance. Privatization of some healthfacilities is a future possibilitywhen insurance schemes be-come entrenched.

After the industrial sector, theSaudi healthcare sector is thelargest job provider, employingmore 21,265 physicians, 44,395nurses, and 25,052 allied healthprofessionals. The average ratioof physicians to population isabout 9 per 10,000 in 2006, onephysician for every 1113 people . A large proportion of health work-ers are expatriates with Saudi na-tionals accounting for only 4098(19.3%) of physicians, 18,444nurses (41.5%), and 17895 alliedhealth personnel (71.4% of total). However, the government hasurgent plans to reduce the de-pendence on foreign workers due

to the instability this reliancecauses in the system. The num-ber of Saudi health workers in allspecialty areas need to be in-creased to meet government tar-gets, and the MOH has 43colleges and institutes for devel-oping new health staff. Privatehealthcare and health insuranceservices are also available inSaudi Arabia, regulated by the In-surance Corporation, which is ac-countable to the MOH.

Healthcare finance

The budget for health and socialdevelopment was £5.4billion in2007, a huge increase from the£4.43 billion 2006 budget. The2007 budget of the Ministry ofHealth represents 6.8% of gov-ernment expenditure, whichworks out to US$ 171 per capita.As a percentage of GDP healthexpenditure is 4.6%, with 74.6%of this coming from governmentand 25.4% from private expendi-ture.

Saudi Arabia Healthcare review

Middle East Hospital

June 2010 | 11

The Government is keen to de-velop the private health insurancesector in order to cut the hugecosts of healthcare to govern-ment, which continue to rise dueto population growth, more elderlypeople, and an increase in non-communicable diseases. As a firststep, employer funded or privateinsurance for expatriate workerswill be made mandatory.

The MOH predicts that the cost ofhealth services will double in thenext two decades, and in order tocounteract this the government isplanning a dramatic expansion ofmedical insurance market to en-compass Saudi nationals as wellas foreigners.

Hospital building program

Within its 2007 budget the MOHplanned for the building of 380new PHC units, 13 new hospitals,and the further expansion of exist-ing facilities. There were are also

64 hospitals already under con-struction by 2007.

The public and private sectors areexpanding their capacity consid-erably, and the following targetshave been set under the 8th De-velopment Plan (2005-2009):

-300 new MOH PHCs-54 new MOH hospitals with a capacity of 6,200 beds -8 new medical colleges-Targets for transferring govern-ment hospitals to the private sec-tor-20 new diabetic centers to be es-tablished throughout the Kingdomat existing and new hospitals

These plans include Health Citydevelopments at Makkah andAsir, and a 700 bed womens’ hos-pital at the recently announcedPrincess Noura bint AbdulrahmanUniversity, which will be thelargest women only university onthe world, and is scheduled to

open in 2010.

In the private sector existing hos-pitals are expanding and upgrad-ing their existing facilities, andplanning new projects. The SaudiGerman Hospital Group intendsto expand their Jeddah hospitaland build four new hospitals in thecoming years. Other privateproviders intending to bhild atleast one more hospital includeThe Bakhsh Hospitals Group, AlHammadi Hospital, Dr SulaimanAl Habib Clinic,Obeid Hospital, AlSalama Hospital in Jeddah, andJareer Investment Group. ASaudi-British hospital is alsoplanned, with a further threewithin the next five years.

Healthcare market

Saudi Arabia is the largest marketfor medical equipment and health-care products in the Gulf. TheMOH is the largest buyer repre-senting around 60 percent of the


market, with the rest being pur-chased by the military, universityhospitals, other governmentagencies, and the private sector.Saudi Arabia is also the majorbuyer on all Gulf CooperationCouncil healthcare equipmentand supplies tenders issued.

Medical Equipment & Supplies

Import Market

The Saudi medical equipmentand supplies market is predomi-nately import oriented, estimatedat SR1.9 billion in 2006. This ismore than double the size of themarket in 1999 of SR883 million,which represents an annualgrowth rate of 11.3%. Demand formedical equipment is the market’smain growth segment, opposed tomedical supplies. Imported equip-ment and supplies are mainlyfrom the USA, Germany and theUK. 2005 exports of medicalequipment and supplies totaledjust US$23 million, almost half ofwhich was medical supplies toTaiwan and the EU.

The Saudi market for medical de-vices is the largest in the MiddleEast and valued at US$676 mil-lion in 2007. The market is esti-mated to be expanding at a rate of4.9% per annum, to reachUS$858 million by 2012, andcould grow even more rapidly ifthe private sector investment lev-els envisaged in the Eighth Devel-opment Plan are realized.

In 2007 the dental equipment andsupplies (consumables) marketwas estimated at £47 million .Most large medical equipment isprovided by German & US com-panies, with the small to medium

size equipment also supplied bythe UK, Japan and Europe. Electro-medical equipment, whichmainly include MRIs, ultrasoundand dental hardware, was themajor equipment category, withimports exceeding SR830 million,followed by medical X-Ray, A, B,C Ray equipment, and Orthopedic& Prosthetic Appliances at SR129million and SR116 million respec-tively.

As for supplies, syringes, needlesand intravenous catheter consti-tuted 37.3% or SR215 million oftotal imported supplies, whichreached SR577 million in 2006,followed by basic surgical anddental supplies at SR168 million.The domestic production base formedical equipment and suppliesis rather small, and is limited todisposable medical items, mainlysyringes and surgical gloves, fur-niture and some X-ray supplies.This is an area of significant po-tential for private investors, givenour expectations of 4.6% annualmarket growth through 2015,which will bring the total marketsize of medical equipment andsupplies to SR3.0 billion.

Pharmaceuticals Market

Saudi Arabia imports around 90%of its pharmaceuticals, and it isestimated that the value of im-ported medicines in 2005 was

£900 million, with this figure pre-dicted to rise around £1.1 billion in2007 . The other 10% is suppliedby 7 domestic manufactures whoproduce a range of generic phar-maceuticals, co-marketing withmulti-national companies. Mostpharmaceutical products are im-ported from the US and Europe,but there has been a recent surgein imports of generic brands fromother Gulf countries, and alsoEgypt, Jordan and India. TheMOH is the largest purchaser, ac-counting for around £136 million,with non-MOH government hospi-tals, private hospitals and phar-macies accounting for the rest.

Since 2000, the Kingdom’s ex-penditure on pharmaceuticalsmore than doubled to SR8.0 bil-lion in 2006, with demand ex-pected to reach SR15.5 billion by2015. Local production has notkept up with demand growth sincethe beginning of the decade,boosting the imports market. Im-ports of drugs and medicines areestimated to have grown by 15%Y/Y over the past six years toSR6.8 billion, while local produc-tion increased by only 8.0% Y/Y toSR1.2 billion.

This is in spite of existing govern-ment policies supportive of abroader local pharmaceuticalsmanufacturing industry. The topeight pharmaceuticals exportersto the Kingdom account for 73%of the total imports market, ofwhich five are European. Germanmanufacturers rank in first place,capturing 16.2% (SR1.1 billion),followed by Switzerland andFrance at 11.4% and 9.8% re-spectively.

June 2010 | 12


t: +44 (0)151 448 1228f: +44 (0)151 448 1008

Company profile: Algeos

Algeos, based in Liverpool, UKhas 4 divisions: Orthotics &Prosthetics; Podiatry; Rehabil-itation and Footwear Compo-nents, and is seen as thelargest supplier of O&P Materi-als and Components in the UKas well as the largest PodiatrySupplier to the NHS.

Algeos was established in Liver-pool in 1881 and has been ownedby the Sheridan Family since1990. Algeos also has offices anddistribution centres in Mumbai,India and Melbourne, Australia.Algeos UK has over 11,000 prod-ucts in its entire catalogue andsells to over 50 countries eachyear. Algeos has recorded doubledigit growth each year for the last5 years and controls a dominantmarket share in its chosen mar-kets in the UK. Exports accountfor over 15% of total sales with theMiddle East accounting for almosthalf that amount.

Algeos have developed a numberof exciting brands which are per-forming extremely well in the Mid-dle East and all are recordingdouble digit growth figures:

Aortha – Orthotics & ProstheticsMaterial Technology

Podotech – Innovative FootcareSolutions for Clinicians

Multicast – Rehabilitation Sup-plies for the Fracture Clinic

Diaped – Solutions for the Multi-disciplinary Diabetic Foot Clinic

A strong focus on the region

Hugh Sheridan, Manager of Dia-ped told MEH, “At present we aresupplying Podiatry clinics, Or-thotic & Prosthetic Departmentsand Rehabilitation clinics througha network of dealers and distribu-tors in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar,UAE, Oman, Jordan and SaudiArabia.

«Over the next 18 months we in-tend to increase our brand promo-tion strategy and work with morefocused dealers and distributorsacross the entire Middle East Re-

gion from Egypt to Iran. We alsohave long term plans to establisha sales office and distribution hubwithin the Middle East to achieveour objectives and support ourdealers as well as clinicans.”Mr. Sheridan continues, “As of2010 there is a good network ofO&P Clinics and Workshopsacross the entire Middle Eastwhom work in tandem with theRehabilitation teams and we areinvolved in the tenders and con-tracts for these facilities. HoweverFootcare and Podiatry servicesare not well catered for and withthe massive growth in diabetesand amputation rates from dia-betes there will almost certainlybe more pressure placed on theO&P clinics which could beavoided with better training andreadily available footcare tech-nologies for diagnosis, preven-tion, education and management


June 2010 | 14

of the diabetic foot. The four mainstays of the Diaped Brand.”

Diaped offers solutions for themultidisciplinary diabetic footclinic and this allows for a largetarget base of clinicians to offerproducts to and to educate- Or-thotists, Prosthetists, Podiatrists,Physiotherapists, OccupationalTherapists, Endocrinologists, Vas-cular surgeons and Nurses.

Mr. Sheridan explains, “The dia-betic foot team can be different inall parts of the world as many dif-ferent specialities are needed andin many areas of the Middle East– this team would not work in thesame town let alone the samebuilding. However parts of the Di-aped range caters for anyone in-volved with the diabetic foot atsome level and we will targetthem through our network of deal-

ers through educational events,conferences and consultative sell-ing.”

A high demand for Diaped

products in the region

Diaped’s research shows that inthe Middle East 50% of diabeticpatients develop a wound in theirfeet during their lifetime and 15%develop chronic ulcers. Forty ninefoot amputations were carried outin the UAE alone last year. Glob-ally, every 30 minutes a limb islost to a landmine but every 30seconds a Limb is lost to dia-betes.

Treating the diabetic foot

At Arab Health 2010 Diapedlaunched the entire Diaped rangeof productswhich offers the onlyrange of products solely focusedfor the multidisplinary diabetic footclinic in the world. They includeMonolfilaments; Tuning forks;Hammers for neuropathy testing;Dopplers for diagnosing Vascularcomplications. Also, educationalmodels and readable literature foreducation in the importance offootcare for patients were demon-strated. A range of shear andpressure offloading foot orthoticsand the latest technology in dia-

betic socks for prevention of dia-betic foot ulcers were exhibited.For management of a diabeticfoot Diaped also offer specialistdiabetic nail nippers, post-opfootwear and a range of offloadingwound care systems.

Diaped has the world’s first func-tional diabetic foot orthotic whichhas been proven to offload thepressures of the foot to preventany breakage of the skin stoppingan ulcer forming in its tracks. Thedesign of the foot orthotic hastaken into account the wearing ofsandals in the Middle East Re-gion. Many Diabetic amputationsare preventable and this is largelydown to patient education whichis why Diaped have a large rangeof visual aids for the clinican todemonstrate to the patient thebest practises of foot care andpersonal foot protection.

Mr. Sheridan states: “When peo-ple think about Diabetes, theythink about Glycaemic control,diet, and lifestyle but foot prob-lems are forgotten. 85% of all dia-betic foot related problems arepreventable and I would like tothink we have brought together arange of recognised solutions forthe multidisciplinary diabetic footclinical team which offer assis-tance with diagnosis, prevention,management and most impor-tantly patient education.”

You can view the Diaped range byvisiting www.Diaped.co.uk. You can also visitwww.Algeos.com to find out moreabout the comprehensive Algeosproduct range and to request afree Diaped brochure.

Arab Health 2010


June 2010 | 15

Medibord Ltd designs and manu-factures patient positioningboards for use in MRI scannersand radiotherapy treatments asan added imaging modality inorder to gain extra tissue defini-tion. As Medibord can be custom-shaped it is able to retro-fitbespoke flat couch tops to MRscanners and position patientswith repeated precision to facili-tate CT and MR image fusion.Where standard MRI scannerscome with curved, carbon fibretops, the unique, flat Medibordcouch top allows radiographers tooutline their patients more pre-cisely by maintaining the sameposition throughout treatment andplanning.

Demand for Improved Diagnos-

tic materials

The Nottingham-based companywas founded in November 2009and in less than a year hasproven definitively responsive toNHS needs in developing an al-ternative to the curved carbonfibre positioning boards that arestandard with MRI, CT andLINACS machines. In March2009, Nottingham City Hospital,part of Nottingham University

Hospital NHS Trust and the UK’sfourth largest acute teaching trust,approached Medibord Ltd to de-velop a patient positioning boardthat had the equivalent propertiesof carbon fibre and would bedeemed safe to use in MRI scan-ners. The hospital gave the com-pany detailed specifications of theproduct it needed and sponsoredthe clinical trials necessary tobring the board to market.

Medibord was born as a direct re-sult of NHS demands, “Before weeven came to market, there wasquite a demand for a board madeof a material that was safe to usein MRI scanners,” says JonathanRichards, CEO of Medibord. “Wefound ourselves in the rare situa-tion of creating a product to fill anexisting need. As a result, we hada very fast track to market.”

The trials conducted at Notting-ham City Hospital proved thatMedibord is suitable for use inMRI, LINAC and CT. The hospitalwas so impressed by the quality

of the material that they orderedseveral couch tops to be in usepermanently.

Award winning material

Medibord’s navigation to marketwas indeed rapid as the uniqueand innovative flat couch top waspresented with the first of its twoimpressive awards at the ArabHealth Conference in Dubai.

Renowned surgeon and UK Am-bassador for Health, Lord Darzipresented the Middle East Hospi-tal Award for Most Innovativeproduct for Export to JonathanRichards who was delighted to re-ceive the award;“For such a newbusiness it is a great honour to beacknowledged for our innovativerange of products. We are de-lighted to receive such a presti-gious award”.

As a result of attending ArabHealth, Medibord’s company pro-file has grown from strength tostrength. Merely a month later, an-other prestigious awards program

Radiotherapy is a very precisetreatment used to treat varioustypes of cancer. It is currentlyresponsible for 40% of cancercures and is consequentlyunder continuous developmentto try and enhance its accu-racy.

Company profile: Medibord Ltd

Jonathan Richards and Lord Darzi

June 2010 | 16


recognised the unique oncologycouch top as one of the most in-novative developments in health-care technology in 2010.

The Da Vinci Awards bring to-gether scientists, engineers, clini-cians and industry leaders topromote ground-breaking im-provements in patient care. TheAward program recognises inno-vation in healthcare technologyand aims to stimulate knowledgeexchange and innovation acrossthe wider East Midlands region inmemory of Professor Peter Smith,a Loughborough academic work-ing at the forefront of health tech-nology innovation.

Many companies boasting suchan impressive awards portfolio,

could be tempted to take a stepback, Medibord realise the as-tounding potential of their productand refuse to simmer down. Thecompany is now working closelywith MRI scanner equipmentmanufacturers to produce specificequipment for them. In the nearfuture Medibord aims to producea new range of boards for CTscanners and is also looking tocultivate its interest in the health-care sector with a new LED sus-pended ceiling light technology.

Future plans

Medibord is now working closelywith the equipment manufacturersof MRI scanners and radiotherapymachines to produce specificequipment for them. It will soon

produce a new range of boardsfor CT scanners and is also mov-ing into supplying LED and sus-pended ceiling lights to hospitalsand clinics. It sees the radiother-apy market as its largest potentialdue to the need for more accuratetreatment and bespoke solutions.

It is currently in discussions with anumber of potential distributionpartners in the Middle East andhas exhibited at the recent Hospit-lar Exhibition in Sao Paulo, Braziland is hopeful of some good on-going business in that region.

In November Medibord will be atMedica 2010 in Dusseldorf to fin-ish off what has been an amazingfirst 12 months in the radiologyand radiotherapy sector.

June 2010 | 17


Mirage, as a brand, has been rep-resenting high quality medical anddental innovations for over 15years and was subject to an MBOin 2003 by current Managing Di-rector Jeremy Bishop. The Groupis comprised of Mirage Medex,and its dental arm, Mirage DentalProducts Ltd.

Mirage Medex specialises in theprovision of ear care productswhich allow clinicians to carry outsafe and effective ear care in ac-cordance with today's UK guide-lines in primary care and ENTsettings. The unique Propulse earirrigation range has been suppliedto the UK primary care marketsince 1997. Mirage also exportsits range of products to Europe,South Africa, Australia, and theUnited States.

The Propulse Ear Irrigator hasbeen the clinicians choice for over10 years. Over that time, the mar-ket leading Propulse range ofproducts has developed to includegood value, high quality instru-ments designed specifically forear care. The current range in-cludes the Propulse NG Ear Irri-

gator that utilises Propulse SingleUse QrX Tips (to help minimisethe risk of cross infection betweenpatients). Propulse CleaningTablets ensure that the cleaning ofthe Propulse Ear Irrigator is a sim-ple and effective procedure. ThePropulse NG was launched inJanuary 09 and encompassedfocus group and user feedbackculminating in the most up to date,user and patient friendly Ear Irri-gator to date.

In 2010 the Propulse NG Ear Irri-

gator won a Middle East Hospital

Health and Innovation Award for

most innovative product for export

in the ENT category.

David Caldwell, General Manager– Sales and Operations, told Mid-dle East Hospital: “Mirage Medexis committed to continually work-ing with clinicians to provide thetools they need to carry out safeand succesful ear care for pa-tients. We have strong links withthe various UK bodies responsible

for carrying out nurse ear caretraining and issuing UK guidelinesand protocols. We use this as aroute to continually gain feedbackfrom users of our products. In ad-dition we carried out a nationalear care survey in 2007, targetingevery surgery in the UK to identifytrends in ear care and areas forfuture development, which culmi-nated in the January 09 launch ofthe Propulse NG.”

Mirage Dental range

Mirage Dental provides a range ofinnovative dental products for pro-fessional and home use such asFlix and the Hydrofoss Kitty Wa-terjet. Flix is a disposable 'In-Be-tween' stick for use in betweenbrushings. It removes plaque,freshens breath, and releases aprolonged cavity-fighting fluoridetreatment resulting in a full mouthclean feel. Flix's functionality andunique patented design allow foradvanced dental care whenever,and wherever an individual mightbe, and assists in the daily re-

Mirage Health Group


June 2010 | 18

moval of plaque prior to it pro-gressing to a health threateningdisease.

The Hydrofloss Kitty Waterjet isparticularly effective at removingbacteria which cannot be cleanedby brushing and flossing alone.This aids in controlling the forma-tion of plaque and calculus andwill help remove deposits at, andslightly below the gum line. TheHydrofloss Kitty Waterjet hasbeen shown to be almost twice aseffective as an unmagnetised irri-gator.

Product focus: The Propulse

NG Irrigation System

The Propulse® NG sets new stan-dards in ear irrigation. Its patentedand unique features create an ir-rigation system that is safe, con-venient and patient friendly. ThePropulse®NG Irrigation System isboth portable and rechargeablemaking it ideal for domiciliary vis-

its or in areas without an electricitysupply. Its variable pressure deliv-ery system provides a pulsedwater jet, which is easily con-trolled.

The Propulse® NG Electronic EarIrrigator is now supplied with theall new, patented Quick ReleaseHandle and QrX™ Single-UseTips. The QrX™ system locks thetip into place during use, makingthis the most operator- friendlyPropulse® to date. The operationof the Propulse® NG is controlledby the convenient footswitch, al-

Expert view: Rosemary Rodgers, Independent Specialist

Nurse Consultant (ear care)

Rosemary Rodgers has been preventing minor ear problems frombecoming major ones since 1990. She founded, established and for12 years directed the Primary Ear Care Centre. She is Clinical Di-rector of the Ear Care Services consultancy, which treats and advisespatients, and trains healthcare professionals in ear care.

Rosemary Rogers told Middle East Hospital that, “first line manage-ment in treating ear infections is to clear the ear of wax and debris,prior to treating with topical anti-biotic and anti-inflammatory drops.The ear irrigator with a variable pressure setting is ideal for carryingthis out”. She also warned of the dangers of non-treatment ofblocked ears advising, “not only can wax and debris in the ear canallead to infection, blocked ears also hinder hearing and lead to ahigher risk of accidents, as demonstrated in a study carried out in1997 by Morgan and Carter [Accident Prevention in Older People].The ear canal skin moves at the rate of 33mm each year sheddingdead skin cells which become part of the ear wax situated at the en-trance of the ear canal. Attempted self clearing of the ears justpushes the wax back down the ear canal and can result in a feelingof deafness and discomfort if the wax is pushed against the eardrum.”

Rosemary Rodgers adds, “Just as people visit their dentist to main-tain healthy teeth, they should also consult a healthcare professionalif they have a problem with their ears as ignoring it will only worsenthe problem. The ear irrigator is an important part of the treatmentplan for dealing with ears blocked with wax in primary care.”www.earcareservicesuk.com

lowing the machine to be con-trolled by the foot, leaving bothhands free for treatment of theear.

A full range of accessories andconsumable items such as SingleUse QrX™ Tips and PropulseCleaning Tablets is available foruse with the Propulse NG. ThePropulse NG is a class IIa Medicaldevice manufactured in accor-dance with the Medical Device Di-rective 93/42/EEC and is CEmarked for safety.www.miragehealthgroup.com


June 2010 | 19

Middle East Healthcare spe-

cialist launches new flagship

business in Saudi Arabia

Despite the challenging globaleconomic conditions, business inthe Middle East continues tothrive and nowhere more so thanin the growing healthcare andhospitals sector. Saudi Arabia inparticular is fast evolving intosomething of a medical hub, withstate of the art new facilities beingbuilt and demand for sophisti-cated and high quality healthcareservices growing across the re-gion.

One leading international health-care company believes it has thewinning formula to meeting thegrowing demands for qualityhealthcare in Saudi and drivingquality and innovation to ensurethat consumers’ high expectationsare met. HCL International spe-cialises in the permanent recruit-ment of specialist nurses, doctorsand other health professionalsinto leading healthcare facilitiesthroughout the Middle East.

HCL International is unique be-cause it specialises purely in therecruitment of highly qualified, ex-perienced healthcare profession-als. The Company’s Middle Eastheadquarters are in Abu Dhabiand it has enjoyed a thriving busi-ness training and recruiting doc-tors and nurses in the UAE sinceearly 2007. Now, HCL Interna-tional is launching its services inSaudi Arabia, and is already work-ing with leading public and private

hospitals in the region.Andrew Anastasiou, Managing Di-rector of HCL International in theMiddle East, explains why theCompany is witnessing such highdemand for its recruitment serv-ices in Saudi Arabia:

“There is a critical shortage ofhealthcare professionals globally.The World Health Organisationestimates that there are approxi-mately four million vacancies forthese highly specialized profes-sionals worldwide. As the MiddleEast, and in particular Saudi, con-tinues to thrive economically andadd to its population, demand forhigh quality doctors and nurseswill continue to grow.”Anastasiou explains that HCL In-ternational benefits from being

June 2010 | 22

The Arab Hospital

able to access highly qualified andexperienced professionals from65 countries around the world.HCL International has flagship of-fices in London and New York aswell as offices and operationsacross Europe, the Middle East,Australia and Canada. Its parentcompany, HCL plc, is listed on theAlternative Investment Market ofthe London Stock Exchange.

Anastasiou adds: “Our globalpresence means that we havestrong and visible pipelines of themost talented and qualified pro-fessionals from around the world,for placement into our clients’workforces. In particular, we havehundreds of highly experienceddoctors and nurses, predomi-nantly from Europe, ready to start

HCL International


Client Testimonial

Ellen is a Senior Recruitment Officer of Physicians for a leading AbuDhabi hospital, and worked with HCL International to meet her re-cruitment needs. She said:

“HCL International provided physicians and nurses of a high calibrein both qualifications and experience. Most importantly informationto and from the candidate is always effectively and speedily con-veyed by the team with requested documents meeting deadlines.Thus as a result, we have been able to fill many important key med-ical posts with HCL candidates including senior consultancy postsand several junior specialist and house officer posts in addition toaround 80 nurses. I can therefore, recommend without any reserva-tion HCL for both physician and nurse placements."


June 2010 | 23

work in Saudi hospitals.”HCL International’s primary focusis on providing a seamless recruit-ment service for its clients. TheCompany will conduct the entirerecruitment process from identify-ing and sourcing streams ofhealthcare staff, through screen-ing them for suitability and puttingthem forward for interview, to re-locating them to their new jobsand helping them acclimatise sothat they deliver the best resultsfrom day one.

Vaughan Coleridge-Matthews, Di-rector of International BusinessDevelopment for HCL Interna-tional, explains why the Companyis recruiter of choice for clients inthe Middle East: “Firstly, we listento exactly what our clients want.

Then, we take all the hassle of re-cruitment away from hospitals byidentifying pipelines of staff andconducting intensive pre-screen-ing to ensure the candidate’s suit-ability for our clients’requirements. The biggest timewaster for hospitals is unsuitablecandidates being put forward sowe see pre-screening as an es-sential service.

“Experienced medical practition-ers are very much in demand inthe entire Middle East region aseven countries with good medicalschools such as Oman, Qatar andBahrain have a shortage of expe-rienced candidates due to thegrowing and ageing population inthese areas.”

HCL International is proud to ad-here to the UK Department ofHealth’s guidelines for ethical in-ternational recruitment, ensuringthat all its recruitment practicesreach the highest standards ofbest practice, both in method andin the quality and experience ofthe candidates.

Coleridge-Matthews adds: “Welike to work with countries at theMinistry of Health level, reachingbilateral and long term agree-ments on the sourcing and recruit-ment of international candidates.We have Memoranda of Agree-ment with health ministries andother government departmentsaround the world to supply health-care professionals, and also to in-vest in their acclimatisation andcontinued professional develop-ment.”With a large number of interestedparties in Saudi Arabia, and astrong pipeline of qualified candi-dates ready to start work, the fu-ture is bright for HCL International.Andrew Anastasiou concludes:“We are very excited about bring-ing this proven and successfulbusiness model to Saudi Arabia,and to working with leadinghealthcare providers in the King-dom. Our chief priority is workingwith our clients to provide the bestpossible service to them, and tothe people who use their serv-ices.”

The Arab Hospital

araGripG R I P P I N G T E C H N O L O G Y

The Paragrip - Secure Wall Mounted Cylinder Storage • Folds flat when not in use• Secures cylinders safely• Easy to clean• Neat• Visit www.paraskate.co.uk to see more product details

The ParaSkate, ParaGrip and ParaDoc is suitable forhospitals, health centres, midwives, vets, GP practices,dentists, research centres, universities, suitable for CO2and helium gas cylinders. Also suitable for military and oil applications.

• Easy to move, even in confined spaces• Gravitational Gripper secures gas cylinders simply & safely• Robust, Neat & Practical• Low cost• Ingenious solution to complex and frequently costly Health and

Safety issues

araSkateG R I P P I N G T E C H N O L O G Y

Contact us now to order or find out more:-NuTec Medical Limited, 285 Sutton Road, Southend on Sea, Essex. SS2 5PF

Website: www.paraskate.co.uk Telephone: +44(0) 1702 615 665 Email: [email protected]

THE 2009INNOVATIONAWARD WINNINGPARAGRIPRANGE*

The Innovation Award will be presented at theArab Health meeting in Dubai by Lord Darzi.

*

A quiet revolution in

the safe handling of

gas cylinders

It was whilst visiting a busy Hos-pital’s Accident & Emergency de-partment the man who was tobecome the inventor of theParaskate was first struck by theproblem. More precisely in fact hewas struck by a passing gas bottleand that’s when he knew it was aproblem.

A passing porter had been strug-gling to steady a large oxygencylinder whilst using his otherhand to straighten up a passingpatient’s trolley just as a largegroup of visitors burst through thenearby swing doors. Perhaps un-surprisingly the gas bottle opted tofollow the force of gravity and in-exorably came to rest on the footof one Rob Moore.

The rationale behind theParaskate is to turn gravity itselfinto the stabilising force. With it’sparallelogram inspired structure itcan not only safely retain and bal-ance even the tallest and un-wieldy cylinders but canaccommodate variations in sizeand is so nimble in use that it canbe turned round 360 degreeswithin it’s own footprint.

Unlike the big clunky trolleys onenormally associates with manoeu-vring things of this size theParaskate is small, low profile, notmuch wider than the bottle that itcarries and takes up negligible

space folded up when not in use.It has been through independenttesting and CE class 1 approval,carries a standard 5 year warranty

and meets UK NHS standards.

NuTec Medical/A-Z Innovationspicked up a prestigious interna-tional award in Dubai at ArabHealth 2010 for the Parasaterange. The award for the most in-novative piece of hospital equip-ment for export to the Middle Eastwent to the Parkskate range.NuTec, along with the other UKwinners, were presented with theiraward by LordDarzi, the formerUK Health Minister.

Rob Moore, Managing Director ofNuTec, said, “Gas bottles are inwidespread use in the healthcareindustry and they are tall, thin andheavy. The dangers their instabil-ity poses while they are beingmoved and in use are consider-

able, and this is a worldwide prob-lem. Previous systems to keepgas bottles in place simply do notwork effectively but by using Para-grip and its counterpartParaskate, a simple mini-trolley,stability of bottles is greatly in-creased both in use and in transit.

«To win this award is a fantasticachievement for the company andit is a tremendous honour for us tobe recognised by the Arabichealthcare world. This award willhelp us expand our business andoperations both in the UK and in-ternationally.”

Also in the range is the Paragripfor safely mounting small cylin-ders near a patient’s bed, theParadoc providing a belt andbraces style docking bay for theParaskate www.paragrip-technology.com

NuTec Medical/A-Z Innovations


June 2010 | 25

BD Diagnostics is a leadingprovider of products for thesafe collection and transport ofdiagnostics specimens, as wellas instruments and reagentsystems to accurately detect abroad range of infectious dis-eases, healthcare-associatedinfections (HAIs) and cancers.

The BD Diagnostics segmentfocuses on improving healthoutcomes for patients and pro-viding laboratories with solu-tions that improve quality,enhance laboratory systemproductivity, reduce costs andinform medical decisions.

Jihad Hussami, Clinical Mar-keting Manager (EMEA), andInterim General Manager forSaudi Arabia, told MEH, “Ourmission at BD is to convertcustomers from open to closedblood collection system. Openusing syringes is higher risk ofinfection when transferringblood to the syringe, and hasa higher rate of needlestick in-juries.

«With a closed tube systemthere is only a risk when dis-posing of the needle. 60% ofhospitals use a closed systemin the Middle East, with a veryhigh percentage of 75-80% inSaudi Arabia.

«Our work in KSA is thereforemainly working to upgradeproducts and reduce needle-

stick injuries through educa-tion and training.”

Product focus: The BD Mi-

crotainer® MAP tube

The BD Microtainer® MAPtube is designed to improveturnaround time, safety andaccuracy of capillary bloodcollection and testing in pa-tients with limited blood vol-ume such as infants, children,oncology patients and the eld-erly.

Due to lack of compatibilitywith automated testing instru-ments, combined with a higherrisk of patient identification er-rors, low volume capillaryblood collection has histori-cally had the risk of longer testresult turnaround time as wellas improper diagnosis andtreatment.

The BD Microtainer® MAPtube is the first low volumecollection system to offer bothstandard, full-size patient

identification labels as well asoffer instrument compatibilitywith most automated hematol-ogy instruments. Due to itspatent-pending design, the BDMicrotainer® MAP Microtubefor Automated Process can runin automated mode withsmaller blood volume.

“Clinical laboratories are fo-cused on preventing specimenidentification errors that canlead to misdiagnosis of pa-tients. We at BD are pleasedto introduce the BD Micro-tainer MAP product to addressthis healthcare issue,” saidTom Polen, President, BD Di-agnostics – Preanalytical Sys-tems. “BD is committed tocontinuing our history of inno-vation in helping improve pa-tient safety and healthcareworker safety, while enhancingworkflow efficiency.”

The BD Microtainer MAP tubeis the first low-volume collec-tion system to accommodate

June 2010 | 26


Company profile: BD Diagnostics

standard, full-size patientidentification labels, thus re-ducing the risk of labeling er-rors. This feature offers asignificant improvement overtraditional microcollectiontubes, which are incompatiblewith standard labels due totheir size. This disparity canlead to dangerous labeling er-rors that may result in misdi-agnosis and incorrect patienttreatment.

The preanalytical phase is acritical step in the diagnosticprocess, with significant im-pact to patient health, health-care worker safety, andworkflow efficiencies. Histori-cally, low-volume capillaryblood collection has increasedtest result turnaround time dueto incompatibility with auto-mated testing instruments and

a higher risk of patient identifi-cation errors. The innovativedesign of the BD MicrotainerMAP tube enables automatedprocessing with 81 percentless blood than venous sys-tems, improving test turn-around time and laboratoryefficiency. This is a critical im-provement for patients fromwhom it is difficult to obtain asufficient blood sample to per-form critical diagnostic tests.

BD profileBD has emerged as a globalmedical technology companywith $7.161 billion in sales infiscal 2009. BD offers a widerange of products to help diag-nose and treat patients, pro-tect healthcare workers andprovide tools for medical re-search.

Through a century of growth,the company's commitment toraising the quality of health-care worldwide has remainedconstant. The founders' pas-sion for excellence is still re-flected in the dedication of29,000 associates around theworld, who work with the sameattention to quality and spirit ofcaring to bring miracles ofmodern medical technology tomillions of people.

June 2010 | 27


Documents

Middle East Hospital June 2010