The SureCount Surgical™ Instrument Management System represents an entirely new approach to surgical practices and protocols. The heart of this system is the SmartTray™, the first surgical tray to help staff in the Operating Room (OR) and Sterile Processing Department (SPD) physically and visually identify, accommodate, and secure only the essential instruments needed for a specific procedure.

The SmartTray™ has a modular design with an aluminum base and stainless steel, instrument-specific brackets that are geometrically arranged to maximize space and functionality for the user. The SmartTray™ limits the number of instruments used during a procedure and the time nurses spend searching for missing items. The brackets are anchored by a unique device called the SmartBar™, which provides visual and tactile feedback whether all necessary tools are in each bracket at the beginning and end of the surgery. Each bracket has the name and number of specific tools to assist with the manual instrument count confirmation.

The SmartTray™ and SmartBar™ establish a chain of custody from the SPD to the OR and back, assuring that all the instruments that have been used during the case have been returned to the SmartTray™ and the OR nurse can say with confidence that the team can proceed to close.

This system also ends delays caused by nurses searching through multiple trays with hundreds of similar-looking instruments for the tool requested by the surgeon.

ROI Checklist: How the SmartTray™ Can Help Your Bottom Line

• Faster tray setup time
• Fewer loads in the autoclave
• Reduction in lost, damaged, and missing instruments
• Faster response to surgeons’ instrument requests
• Fewer staff adverse events from excess instrument handling
• Reduced potential for retained surgical instruments

The current decades-old standard surgical trays in use facilitate the containment of wrapped instrument groups for sterilizing and use in the OR but do little to facilitate efficiency in the handling, processing, and use of instruments. Because so many items are unnecessarily flowing through the SPD, essential tools are often missing when trays arrive in the OR.

The SmartTray™ accommodates virtually all instruments, in any order or mix, from the six largest instrument manufacturers. This means that a variety of tools with different lengths, widths, and depths will fit within the tray in any array, increasing the types of procedures for which it can be used.

SmartTrays™ are designed to extend the lifecycle of the instruments they contain for maximum utility for the customer. Up until now, today’s trays and instruments have an expected lifecycle of 1,000 uses. However, due to the limitations of the standard tray design, the instruments are often lost or misplaced long before they wear out. The SureCount design and processes integrate the SmartTray™ and instruments to ensure their durability.

When fully rolled out, the SureCount system will have a hub and spoke format. The hub – a stackable two-tray General Surgery set with room for 48 instruments – is already developed. The spokes will be procedure-specific trays for the most common surgeries, including labor and delivery, hysterectomies, and vascular surgery. When all iterations of the standard SmartTrays™ are available, the system will cover more than 80% of all major surgeries.

SureCount has contracted with Paragon Medical, a leading worldwide supplier of sterilization cases and trays, to design, manufacture and distribute the SmartTray™.

The SmartTray™ is designed to be consistent with the sterilization containers that are already deployed and is compatible with existing sterilization processes and equipment.

SureCount will offer its General Surgery SmartTray™ for trials, early adopters, and outpatient customers who may not need further customization.