In Star Trek, a doctor comes to the rescue to assess wounds using a Tricorder, used to take vitals, diagnose ailments, and scan for alien lifeforms, all with alarming accuracy in a non-invasive way. While the tricorder was once science fiction, today's medical devices are quickly making the concept a reality. The power of handheld technology is driving medical equipment to become smaller, lighter, and more powerful.
Mobile devices in healthcare are becoming more available to patients as awareness of their benefits grows in hospitals and medical centers. According to Precedence Research, portable medical devices will grow at a CAGR of 11.35%, with a value expected to reach up to 85.1 billion US. Market growth escalates with the onset of new technologies and consumer awareness of the importance of health and fitness. In addition, “patients expect Amazon-level service, physicians need data from multiple sources to be brought together in one place, and payors seek better real-world outcomes and lighter financial burdens” (Nilsson & Sheppard, 2021), as stated in The Changing Face of Medical-Device Design, all of which aid in fueling the market’s growth.
Smarter = Smaller Medical Devices
The power of tablets and smartphones has led to a rise in small, portable, handheld devices, utilizing mobility and replacing large, bulky screens that come with medical hardware. These devices are also now designed with applications that fully integrate wireless technology. From ultrasound machines to retinal cameras, computers and tablets play a critical, centralized role in modern medical equipment. As a result, many manufacturers use medical-grade tablets with their medical devices to run software applications seamlessly and smoothly.
While medical device manufacturers take advantage of smartphone and tablet technology, they often forget one critical component: provider workflow. Medical practitioners often need to focus on their patients, providing hands-on care. If the medical device is in one hand while the other supports the patient, who will hold the smartphone or tablet? The miniaturization of medical devices coupled with smartphone or tablet displays has created the need for hardware to be used and stored safely. These features and needs have raised a new generation of mobile hardware carts.
Medical Devices Attached to a Mobile Medical Cart
Medical devices are getting smarter and, with that, are getting smaller. Managing small, handheld devices is cumbersome. They're easily lost, dropped, and damaged. Curtis Holder, Tryten's Director of Sales Operations, states, "End users want the monitors or iPads to be steady while conducting an exam with the medical device. They don't want to hold the iPad in one hand and the transducer in another. When medical device manufacturers pair their devices with a mobile medical cart, the customer has more incentive to buy your medical device as the solution becomes much more durable and safer."
Therefore, put your company's medical devices on a lightweight, portable cart to maintain the power of small, smart medical devices without the risks. Read on to learn the benefits of investing in a mobile medical cart.
All-in-one Custom Mobile Solution
Tryten helps innovative medical device companies and healthcare solution providers add safe and effective mobility capabilities to their products for better clinical workflows and improved patient care delivery. From rapid prototyping to production and assembly, our mobility experts devise cost-effective, high-performance custom medical carts for your unique needs and branding.
As a leading custom medical cart OEM vendor, Tryten offers a range of branding options. From custom decals to colored cable management strips to fully colored bases and more, our carts will reflect your brand.
We know that our diverse client base has a range of needs. They must meet the demands of patients in dynamic healthcare environments. To do that, we offer custom device adapters, branding options, and 40+ custom accessories.
Tryten’s cart includes a Cybernet monitor and a Poly PTZ camera on the back. Additionally, the Cybernet monitor includes three built-in battery packs and an Internal PC. With its strong hybrid capability, this all-in-one cart is a compact solution that allows your customers to quickly position one solution rather than transporting different medical peripherals for a single exam or surgery.
Let’s explore the possibilities together.
Tryten is ready and willing to help with your project, big or small, and our wide variety of platforms can support your medical & technology devices, telehealth expansion, or overhauls and more. Let us use our guidance to support you today.
The Challenge of Ultrasound:
Most physicians face the challenge of getting the ultrasound to the patient since conventional ultrasound machines are large and bulky, with all the accessories required. When performing an ultrasound evaluation, practitioners need to apply gel to the transducer head, move the probe to the desired body part, and clean the equipment at the end of the visit. They must also use both hands during the exam while viewing the images. Most importantly, to comply with hygiene protocols, they must ensure that only the transducer head comes in contact with the patient.
This is the very challenge medical device manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers like Philips, Butterfly, Poly, and more needed to address, which led them to partner with Tryten on a custom medical cart. Whether it was shifting ultrasound to handheld devices or incorporating video translation services for patient interaction, Tryten provided a custom solution which benefitted each manufacturer.
Tryten’s lightweight carts designed for our ultrasound manufacturer partners such as Philips, Butterfly, and Clarius help move the device easily to the patient and conveniently accommodate accessories while performing an exam. Additionally, the ultrasound images appear on a tablet affixed to the cart for easy viewing.
Check out Tryten’s Ultrasound Mobile Medical Carts:
Philips Lumify Ultrasound's innovative cart design allows you to hold up to 2 transducers or gel bottles. The Supply Caddy is used to hold wipes, disinfectants, or chargers.
Our Clarius Ultrasound Cart supports tablets with the Clarius Ultrasound Scanner using the Clarius app. It also has a Height Adjustable Arm, Secure Tablet Bracket, Concealed Tablet Management, and a Modular Accessory System.
The articulating arm and adjustable tablet bracket on the Butterfly iQ+ Ultrasound Cart accommodate most modern tablets. The cart also comes with the custom-designed Butterfly iQ Probe & Charger Mounting Bracket, a Work Surface, and a Supply Caddy.
Smart Medical-Grade Investment
It's not feasible for a healthcare system to mount your medical devices in each patient’s room.
- A mobile medical cart is a wise investment as healthcare systems do not need to buy many medical devices.
- Invest in a few, attach them to a cart, and easily transport them across different floors, saving thousands of dollars.
Tryten's lightweight and easily positioned cart features medical-grade materials and is ISO 9001:2015 certified. The cart's surfaces are easily wipeable, which complies with the strict safety and hygiene protocols in healthcare.
Equipment Protection
- American hospitals lose millions of dollars yearly because of stolen, lost, and damaged equipment.
- In 2015, the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, CA, reported 383 items missing from 2010 to 2014, valued at more than $11 million.
- In 2016, more than $50,000 of pilfered equipment surfaced on eBay after disappearing from the United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia, NY.
Consider a health system that wants to invest in your new medical devices. You must now convince them that your devices will be protected from damage or unauthorized access. By attaching them to a durable yet lightweight mobile medical cart, you can protect your devices and reduce the risk of loss – a high-value proposition for healthcare systems.
Additionally, all Tryten carts feature a cable management channel that cleverly conceals all cables and securely hides power connections to prevent accidental unplugging and avoid trip hazards. Check out the cable management channel on our flagship tablet and medical device cart - the Tryten S1.
Space Optimization
In The New York Times article, Operating Rooms Go Under the Knife, Dr. Scott T. Reeves, Chair at the Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina, states, “operating rooms resemble an airplane cockpit. There is sophisticated equipment, tight spaces, blinking lights, and a cacophony of sound.”
“They’re often cluttered, people can trip, surgeons and nurses can stick themselves with needs, and site infections from dust and other contaminations are a growing problem. He goes on to say, “The problem of squeezing people and a variety of machines – not to mention robots – into surgical suites designed decades ago is forcing a change” (Rosen, 2021).
- It’s inefficient to fit several medical devices and monitors while performing a time-sensitive surgery or other care workflows.
- Attaching them to a mobile medical cart gives you only one solution that needs space.
- Medical carts are generally large but are a requirement in places like the emergency department or small clinical settings where space is limited and time is of the essence.
Tryten’s passion and mission are to make a difference in the healthcare space through thoughtful, responsive, flexible designs and partnerships. We strive to accommodate our medical device manufacturing and original equipment manufacturing partners in a way that helps them succeed by providing a wide variety of customized platforms that can support medical and technology devices. To learn about partnering with Tryten on custom mobile medical applications and your unique healthcare needs, visit https://tryten.com/contact-us/.
References
Nilsson, T., & Sheppard, B. (2021, September 15). The changing face of medical-device design. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved July 29, 2022, from https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/life-sciences/our-insights/the-changing-face-of-medical-device-design
Precedence Research. (2021, June 30). Portable medical devices market size to surpass US$ 85.1 bn by 2027. GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved July 29, 2022, from https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/06/30/2255736/0/en/Portable-Medical-Devices-Market-Size-to-Surpass-US-85-1-Bn-by-2027.html
Rosen, E. (2021, May 5). Operating Rooms go under the Knife. The New York Times. Retrieved July 29, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/05/health/operating-rooms-change-technology.html
