VascuChek’s Financial ROI: 5 Key Features That Drive Cost Savings

VascuChek^® is a wireless handheld vascular Doppler designed to take the hassle out of vascular screenings. By upending traditional vascular Doppler equipment through a sleek, streamlined design that prioritizes efficiency, VascuChek puts the control back in physicians’ hands during vascular screenings. In addition, given tight hospital budgets, resources spent on technologies need to deliver measurable value and reduce waste and unnecessary spending.

We designed VascuChek in partnership with more than 100 leading clinicians with careful attention to financial return on investment (ROI). Here are five standout features that bubble up when evaluating how VascuChek overcomes the status quo in this area.

Delivering ROI by Lowering Operational Costs and Improving Workflow

1. Time spent searching for replacement batteries.
   • Status quo: Typically, Doppler systems used in clinical settings rely on disposable alkaline batteries, and Dopplers used in surgical settings rely on large box batteries. Probe and console failure due to dead batteries poses a significant inconvenience and results in lost time and revenue for many surgeons.
     • Cost: Finding a replacement battery could take up to 15 minutes of valuable time with a patient. Studies show that each minute in the OR costs approximately $36 to $37. With this in mind, searching for replacement batteries could amount to up to $555 worth of wasted time.¹
   • Solution: VascuChek’s reliable, rechargeable Doppler system decreases system failure and reduces time spent searching for replacement batteries.
2. Cost of sterilizing reusable probes.
   • Status quo: For decades, OR teams have leaned on reusable Doppler probes that require sterilization after each patient.
     • Cost: Sterilizing reusable probes adds to circulating nurses’ workloads. They must collect, wipe down, pack, and document reusable probes before routing them for processing. While the cost of reprocessing a device varies depending on factors such as the type of device, the reprocessing methods used, the cost of materials and labor, and the efficiency of the hospital, some studies found that it can range from approximately $10.16 to $280.71 per instrument.^2-4
   • Solution: VascuChek’s single-use, disposable surgical Doppler probes eliminate the need for sterilization between uses, saving money and valuable nursing time.
3. Time spent on probe malfunctions.
   • Status quo: Traditional Doppler probes are prone to malfunction due to repeated cleaning and disinfection.
     • Cost: On average, surgical staff report losing seven minutes of OR time dealing with Doppler probe malfunction. This increases surgical procedure costs by $108 per minute.⁵
   • Solution: VascuChek’s disposable, single-use probes eliminate sterilization needs and include a patented sheath for sterile fields. This reduces malfunctions, providing a reliable blood flow reading without costly interruptions and returning valuable time to OR teams.
4. Cost of compromising the sterile field.
   • Status quo: With traditional Dopplers, there’s a risk of compromising sterile boundaries because the team has to reach across the patient to get an accurate blood flow check.
     • Cost: While significant, the cost of an SSI varies greatly based on whether it leads to a longer hospital stay, readmission, outpatient and emergency visits, further surgery, or prolonged antibiotic treatment. Based on the severity, the cost can range from less than $400 per case to more than $30,000 per case.^6,7
     • Cost: Compromising sterile boundaries also introduces costly compliance risks, although costs vary greatly by the type and severity of the violation. Violations of sterile techniques can result in patient lawsuits over failed compliance, OSHA fines, CMS fines and – while difficult to quantify – long-term damage to a healthcare institution’s reputation and trust.
   • Solution: Eliminating cords and wires and placing a handheld device like VascuChek in the physician’s hands that is FDA cleared for surgical and clinical use, protects the sterile field from microorganisms that could lead to costly SSIs and assures sterile surgical field compliance.
5. Provider fatigue.
   • Status quo: Stress over maintaining the sterile field while juggling clunky cords and wires. Searching for replacement batteries. Sterilizing probes. Communication back and forth between the clinician and the circulating nurse to get accurate readings. These scenarios that play out with traditional Doppler systems disrupt workflow and put stress on surgical teams.⁸
     • Cost: Stressed OR teams have a higher risk of errors, which can add costs in the form of mistakes and inefficiencies.^9,10
   • Solution: VascuChek’s features were designed to help streamline the workflow of vascular Doppler screenings thereby helping to minimize the stress on OR teams.

VascuChek delivers financial ROI through reduced consumables, lower sterilization costs, less time spent on probe malfunctions, and a lower likelihood of SSIs. Reducing provider and OR team workflow frustrations may also boost workplace satisfaction, leading to significant ROI for both hospitals and individual OR teams through less frequent turnover.¹¹

By streamlining vascular screenings with an eye toward increased team and cost efficiencies, bolstered by a handheld cordless design and single-use probes with a sheath for sterile fields, VascuChek challenges the status quo.

If you’d like to learn more about the VasuChek handheld Doppler system and its many operational and financial benefits, schedule a consultation today.

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Sources:

1. Childers CP, Maggard-Gibbons M. Understanding Costs of Care in the Operating Room. JAMA Surgery. 2018;153(4):e176233. doi:https://doi.org/10.1001/jamasurg.2017.6233
2. Reprocessing Cost includes per-unit costs for Ethylene Oxide (EO) Resterilization, which is a standard technique for Doppler probes.
3. SGNA. Standard of infection prevention in the gastroenterology setting. 2015
4. AORN. Guideline for processing flexible endoscopes. 2016:675-758.
5. Bokshan SL, Mehta S, DeFroda SF, Owens BD. What Are the Primary Cost Drivers of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in the United States? A Cost-Minimization Analysis of 14,713 Patients. Arthroscopy: The Journal of Arthroscopic & Related Surgery. 2019;35(5):1576-1581. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arthro.2018.12.013
6. Urban JA. Cost Analysis of Surgical Site Infections. Surgical Infections. 2006;7(s1):s19-s22. doi:https://doi.org/10.1089/sur.2006.7.s1-19
7. Ranzani F, Oronzo Parlangeli. Digital Technology and Usability and Ergonomics of Medical Devices. Springer eBooks. Published online December 14, 2020:455-464. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59403-9_32
8. The Team Will Effectively Communicate and Exchange Critical Information for the Safe Conduct of the Operation. World Health Organization. Published 2009. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK143239/
9. Rodziewicz TL, Houseman B, Vaqar S, Hipskind JE. Medical error reduction and prevention. National Library of Medicine. Published February 12, 2024. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499956/
10. Vella KM, Hall AK, Merrienboer JJG, Hopman WM, Szulewski A. An exploratory investigation of the measurement of cognitive load on shift: Application of cognitive load theory in emergency medicine. AEM Education and Training. 2021;5(4). doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/aet2.10634
11. Speicher LL, Francis D. Improving employee experience: Reducing burnout, decreasing turnover and building well-being. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. 2022;21(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cgh.2022.09.020