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Holy Name Medical Center announced on Thursday it is expanding its focus on infection prevention and antibiotic stewardship efforts with the addition of an innovative antimicrobial technology.

SilvaClean, a laundry additive developed by Applied Silver and available exclusively from health care solutions provider Medline, is designed to infuse textiles with silver ions during the final rinse cycle of the laundry process, providing residual post-laundry activity against the seven leading pathogens.

The technology provides immediate benefit to launderable linens and gowns throughout their use and consequently to the patient environment. Mayflower, a family-owned laundry partner that serves hospitals across the Northeast, began treating common hospital linens like bed sheets, towels and caregiver uniforms with the product at the beginning of February.

“Our investment in SilvaClean technology is an investment in the people we care for and we’re proud to fold it into our comprehensive infection prevention program,” said Dr. Adam Jarrett, chief medical officer at Holy Name. “The EPA’s approval of this product highlights this as a proven solution when it comes to improving quality of care.”

Jarrett told NJBIZ that the program focuses on reducing and preventing hospital-acquired infections.

“Safety and quality of care are of course paramount at Holy Name, so when we learned this product may help prevent seven of the most common hospital-acquired infections, we knew it would only enhance our already robust infection prevention program. We are very proud to be the first hospital in the Northeast and one of just 12 in the U.S. to use this technology.”

From a clinical perspective, Jarrett said that as antibiotic resistance continues to rise along with emerging new infectious diseases, Holy Name considers this a very proactive step toward protecting its patients and the community.

“It also makes sense from a financial perspective. Today’s reimbursement model rewards and penalizes hospitals and health systems for safety and quality performance – this was an opportunity to hone in on critical areas of focus, including reducing readmission rates, length of stay, and percentage of hospital-acquired infections,” said Jarrett.

“Keeping a patient’s environment clean is a critical part of an infection prevention program and many forward-thinking facilities we partner with are taking a closer look at how hospital linens play an impactful role in that strategy,” said Elizabeth Hutt Pollard, executive chair of the board of directors, Applied Silver.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly one in 31 hospital patients has at least one health care-associated infection on any given day.

“With the ongoing threat from emerging pathogens, we must continually look at new technologies as part of our overarching infection prevention program. Whether it’s working with infection prevention to develop customized bloodstream infection dressing change kits or facilitating the introduction of SilvaClean, Holy Name‘s partnership with Medline continues to help improve patient outcomes on a daily basis,” said David Van Bever, director of environmental services and transport services at Holy Name.