Holy Name Medical Center, based in Teaneck, announced June 8 that it partnered with SICPA — an identification and traceability service provider — on technology capable of providing early detection of pathogens in a hospital setting.
The technology analyzes wastewater to monitor and protect against the presence of viral contaminants such as COVID-19, according to the announcement.
The COVID-19 ICU at Holy Name Medical Center in March 2020. – JEFF RHODE, HOLY NAME MEDICAL CENTER
“This technology can provide our caregivers with information vital to protecting the health of our patients,” Holy Name President and CEO Michael Maron said in a statement. “We’re grateful for another tool that can strengthen our fight against COVID-19, and possibly help prevent a future pandemic altogether.”
The new technology is part of the health center’s goal of automatically monitoring for known viruses and to quickly share those results with hospital staff. The wastewater analysis can be used in any treatment area and provide results in less than two hours.
Holy Name said SICPA’s technology can also be updated regularly to track new mutations or emerging variants.
Founded in 1925, Holy Name is a faith-based system that provides inpatient, outpatient and wellness services through the Holy Name Medical Center; the Holy Name Physicians network; the Villa Marie Claire hospice center in Saddle River; HNH Fitness in Oradell; the Sister Claire Tynan School of Nursing in Englewood Cliffs; Hôpital Sacré Coeur, a 200-bed hospital in Milot, Haiti; as well as home-care, telemedicine and hospital-at-home programs.
