STERIS teams with NeoForce to market first surgical system just for newborn babies

NeoForce Rainbow Flex Procedural Table at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital

MENTOR, Ohio — STERIS Corp. and NeoForce Group Inc. have agreed to jointly market the world’s first surgical system designed just for newborn babies.

The system is made up of NeoForce’s neonatal surgical table and lighting, visualization and connectivity technology from STERIS. It’s designed to be located near fragile babies, rather than transport the babies to a modified operating room for adults.

In 2008, NeoForce of Ivyland, Pa., started working with (pdf) University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland to design a surgical table system that would meet the needs of surgeons who operate on newborns, according to a joint NeoForce/STERIS release (pdf).

STERIS was called into the project to integrate high-performance lighting, visualization and connectivity technologies with the table.

Voila, a neonatal surgical system was born.

“As we developed our Rainbow Flex surgical table, we had to assure that our designs would harmonize with the other devices in the [operating room],” Otho Boone, president of NeoForce, said in the statement. “STERIS caught our attention with their superior lighting, integration and casework solutions.”

In the last year, STERIS has joined with several other manufacturers, including Philips Healthcare, GE Healthcare, Siemens Medical Solutions, and most recently, Intuitive Surgical, maker of da Vinci surgical robots, to offer suites of operating and procedure room equipment and technology.

Such collaborations are helping STERIS add revenue — even during a recession — and participate in what experts call “disruptive technology” that is revolutionizing surgical care.

“As hospitals focus on processes that reduce costs and improve outcomes, integrated solutions will bring technology to patients in special care areas rather than transporting them between departments,” Bill O’Riordan, vice president and general manager of Surgical Solutions at STERIS, said in the statement.