Students brainstorm to reduce hospital-acquired infections

Young biomedical engineer creates bacteria-killing lights


Colleen Costello, a young biomedical engineer, is tackling hospital-acquired infections by creating bacteria-killing lights, according to an article on the CNBC website.

Costello teamed with James Peterson, an aspiring mechanical engineer and one of her college friends at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. to form a company in their senior year. 

Hospitals already use ultraviolet lights to kill germs, but UV can't be used around people for prolonged periods of time, since it can cause damage to skin cells. 

Costello and Peterson spent 18 months working to manipulate light to create a technology that does not harm humans. They used a mix of LED lights to create a commercially desirable solution. They tweaked the white levels to make them softer or harsher depending where they're being used, the article said.

Their company, Vital Vio, started selling the lights this fall and in New York City. Mount Sinai Hospital is testing the product.

Read the article.

 

 



December 22, 2014


Topic Area: Safety


Recent Posts

Cyberattack Results in Patient Reroutes at Anne Arundel Medical Center

A recent cyberattack on Luminis Health Care led to care disruptions and treatment cancelations at Maryland hospital.


Tangram Furnishes Be Well OC Irvine Behavioral Health Campus

Case study: Through a public-private partnership, Be Well OC’s 22-acre Irvine campus expands Orange County’s continuum of behavioral healthcare.


Suntree Internal Medicine Reports Data Breach

Suntree Internal Medicine has no evidence of misuse, or attempted misuse, of any potentially affected information.


Why Healthcare Facilities Management Is Critical to Patient Safety 

Hospitals and other healthcare facilities rely on much more than doctors and nurses to keep patients safe.


Sanford Health and North Memorial Health Finalize Partnership

An integration process is underway to create a unified organization.


 
 


FREE Newsletter Signup Form

News & Updates | Webcast Alerts
Building Technologies | & More!

 
 
 


All fields are required. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.