This company is ensuring hospital IVs are working the way they should

Inserting an IV catheter is among the most common hospital procedures, yet up to half of them fail. This can lead to patients getting the wrong dose or cause scarring and nerve damage.

Extreme cases of complications from incorrectly placed IVs can lead to amputation and even death. While hospitals use continuous monitoring for patients’ heart rates and blood-oxygen levels, it hasn’t been standard practice to continuously monitor IV sites to ensure that patients receive the proper dose of medication.

Newport News, Virginia-based ivWatch has developed a monitor and biosensor that uses near-infrared light and visible light to perform more than 18,000 checks every hour to make sure an IV is working properly and delivering the correct dose of medication without leaks. In 2023, ivWatch grew the reach of its technology, launching in Canada and the U.K. Its technology was also clinically validated, most notably in a study of NICU patients at Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital in the Netherlands; the results were published in The Journal of Vascular Access.

All told, 2023 saw ivWatch complete 2.7 million patient-monitoring hours as its revenue rose 17% year over year and its customer base grew 25%.

Explore the full 2024 list of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, 606 organizations that are reshaping industries and culture. We’ve selected the firms making the biggest impact across 58 categories, including advertising, artificial intelligence, design, sustainability, and more.

https://www.fastcompany.com/91041926/ivwatch-most-innovative-companies-2024?partner=rss&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=rss+fastcompany&utm_content=rss