Pediatric Device Showcase: Novonate’s LifeBubble

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ARTICLE SUMMARY:

Novonate is a commercial-stage company dedicated to designing products that solve problems in neonatal care. The company is currently commercializing its first product, the LifeBubble, a novel device for the securement of umbilical cord catheters. Health Advances interviewed the co-founder and CEO of Novonate, Eric Chehab, PhD, to discuss the company’s progress to date and advice for pediatric device entrepreneurs. By Andrew Millar, Shoumyo Majumdar, PhD, and Susan Posner.

When healthcare providers hear “central line-associated bloodstream infection,” they may instinctively think “never event.” Never events are errors in medical care that are clearly preventable yet so serious in their consequences for patients that they should never happen. In 2008, Medicare included central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) in its initial list of diagnoses for non-payment, leading many providers to regard the complication as a never event. Since then, much has been done to prevent CLABSIs, including the institution of preventative bundles and improvements in catheter technology. A significant amount of this progress, however, has focused on adult patients who may receive central lines for hemodynamic monitoring or long-term IV therapy among other reasons. But when considering the impact of CLABSIs today, we may not immediately give thought to the hospital’s littlest patients—the neonates for whom vascular access is a critical part of their care.

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