Category: Medical Technology

Around the clock urgent in the hospital demands medical grade pcs for 24/7 use

Medical All-In-One PCs for 24/7 Use

Michelle

As one of the most trusted public services, healthcare facilities have an obligation to serve those in their community. Health emergencies can happen at any time, and as such hospitals are expected to be open 24/7. While medical staff can be shifted so that the hospital is constantly staffed and prepared for emergencies, the same cannot be said about the equipment they employ. Ensuring that your hospital has technology capable of being used on a 24/7 basis is crucial to providing quality healthcare to those in your community.

How To Keep Your Medical Carts Running 24/7

Medical carts with medical computers are one of the most important facets of any hospital. Medical carts with medical computers are capable of turning a stationary piece of medical equipment into a mobile workstation for use in multiple rooms of a hospital. However, medical carts with medical computers have one downfall: they need to be decommissioned regularly for charging. Medical carts can spend hours every day plugged into the wall instead of helping patients. But it doesn’t have to be this way. With medical computers from Tangent, your medical carts can operate on a 24/7 basis. Medical computers like the E24B from Tangent utilize hot-swap battery technology. While one battery is in use, two others can be charging. When the in-use battery gets low, simply insert another battery into one of the other two battery ports and the medical computer is completely recharge, all without being turned off!

Medix E24B From Tangent
                   Medix E24B From Tangent

Medical All-In-One PCs

Another way to ensure your facility’s medical computers are able to operate 24/7 is to make sure they are medical all-in-one PCs. Medical all-on-one PCs are medical grade computers where the entire computer contained behind their touchscreen. That means that medical all-in-one PCs like the Medix C19 from Tangent do not require mice or keyboards to operate. In addition, medical all-in-one PCs have the least amount of moving parts possible, driving down the amount of maintenance necessary substantially. Medical all-in-one PCs also can feature hot-swap battery technology, allowing them to be moved from one room to another without being unplugged and turned off. In an emergency, medical all-in-one PCs can also make use of their UPS battery backups to ensure that life-saving care can continue even without external power.

Medix C19 From Tangent
           Medix C19 From Tangent

24/7 U.S. Based Technical Support for Medical All-In-One PCs

Just like how your hospital operates 24/7, Tangent’s U.S. based technical support team is available 24/7. Tangent’s trained technical support operatives are knowledgeable about all tangent medical computer and medical all-in-one PC products. With remote assist tools, advance exchange services, and image pre-loading, Tangent’s U.S. based technical support team will find a solution to your issue. 

Medical Computers From Tangent: Built For 24/7 Use

Hospitals are designed to run around the clock, and the computers they employ should be too. Medical computers from Tangent are built to be used 24/7, ensuring your hospital provides the quality care your patients depend on, day and night.

 

Medical Grade Computers For Operating Room Use

Fanless Medical Computers For Operating Room Use

Admin

Of the 27 million surgeries performed every year in the United States, 5% result in a Surgical site infection (SSI). A SSI is labeled as such when an infection occurs within 30 days of surgery or within one year of a foreign object being implanted in the body. While this number may seem low, the 5% amounts to 1.35 million SSIs per year. These infections can cause serious detriment to patients, longer hospitals stays, and even drastic healthcare costs to the hospital treating said patient. Reducing the amount of SSIs in your hospital can lead to decreased costs, fewer repeat patients, and a healthier workplace.

 

 

How To Reduce Surgical Site Infections In The Hospital

While it is nearly impossible to create a perfectly sterile environment to perform surgeries in, there are promising remedies that can help reduce the amount of SSI causing bacteria in the operating room. One remedy is the use of fanless medical computers. Fanless medical computers are medical computers that do not feature fan-based cooling systems. Instead, they employ passive cooling systems that work just as good, if not better than, fan-based cooling systems.

 

The main benefit of fanless medical computers is that since they do not require outside air be brought in as a coolant, they can have fully enclosed casings. This means that most fanless medical computers are water resistant in addition to being fanless. It also means that no there is no dust build up in the medical computer. This is important because dust buildup in medical computers can lead to the creation of bacteria breeding grounds. We all know that bacteria love warm places, and what better place for bacteria to thrive than in the heatsink of a fan constantly circulating warm air and organic dust particles. Fanless medical computers completely eliminate this festering possibility, leading to a much safer and cleaner medical computer.

 

 

Fanless Medical Computers Are Antimicrobial

 

In addition to being rid of a breeding ground for bacteria, fanless medical computers from Tangent are antimicrobial computers. The touchscreen of every Tangent fanless medical computer features an antimicrobial coating with mitigates the growth of bacteria on its surface. So in addition to not creating a breeding ground for bacteria, fanless medical computers also eliminate any bacteria growth on their surfaces. This one-two punch makes fanless medical computers the perfect medical computers for operating room use, as they can drastically reduce the bacteria present in the room and reduce the likelihood of a SSI from occurring.

 

 

Fanless Medical Computers: Perfect For The Operating Room

Every year, 1.35 million SSIs occur. These SSIs are not only a detriment to the wellbeing of the afflicted patient, but to the hospital serving them. Fanless medical grade computers from Tangent can help reduce the likelihood of these infections from every occurring, saving hospitals time and money and saving patients from further suffering.

Medical Grade Computers For Emergency Room Use

Medical Computers For Emergency Room Use

Michelle

In 2016, U.S. emergency rooms treated 145.6 million Americans for their emergency conditions according to the Center for Disease Control. This number has been steadily rising since the 1990s, and can be expected to continue increasing with each passing year. With such a high demand for emergency services, it is important to keep your hospital’s emergency room as up to date as possible. With the latest medical computers at your physician’s side, emergency room wait times can drastically decrease and patients can get the life-saving care they need.

Medix E22B | E24B

E22B and E24B from Tangent: built for emergency room use
E22B and E24B from Tangent: built for emergency room use

The Medix line of medical computers from Tangent are some of the most valuable assets that an emergency room can contain. With a wide touchscreen, busy emergency room personnel can quickly input a patient’s data and get right to helping them. Unlike other computers, the Medix E22B does not quit. With hot-swap battery technology, the Medix E22B can be safely unplugged from a wall outlet and still operate normally. In an emergency situation, the last thing you want to be worrying about is how to transfer medical data around with a patient. The Meddix E22B allows doctors to unplug their medical computer and follow their patient with the same data they admitted them with.

Medix T24B

The T24B with Hot-Swap batteries for Emergency Room use
The T24B with Hot-Swap batteries for Emergency Room use

The Medix T24B from Tangent features the same hot-swap battery technology as the Medix E22b, also with three built in slots for batteries. This allows the Medix T24B to not only access the power of three batteries at once, but continuously run 24/7 without being plugged in. The Medix T24B is perfect for medical carts that are constantly in demand and cannot afford to be put out of commission for charging. With 6th generation Intel processors, this medical computer is as fast as it is reliable and can handle any medical program thrown at it.

Medix KW 15

Medical grade computer for emergency room us, the KW line from Tangent
Medical grade computer for emergency room use, the KW 15 from Tangent

As hospital emergency rooms become increasingly more crowded, every square inch of space will become ever more valuable. That’s why smaller medical computers such as the Medix KW 15 are a vital tool for any emergency room. While examination and surgery rooms can afford the luxury of a widescreen medical computer, the same may not be true for emergency rooms. The Medix KW 15 features all the power of a traditional medical computer but in a sleeker, smaller package. This allows doctors more space to treat patients, while still maintaining the computational power needed to do their job to the fullest. 

Reduce Emergency Room Times With Medical Computers

With emergency room wait times only expected to rise, the time to plan for a crowded emergency waiting room is now. Medical computers from Tangent can help reduce wait times, improve emergency room computing power, and help those truly in need of help.

Medical computers by Tangent are also Antimicrobial computers

The Importance Of Antimicrobial Medical PCs

Michelle

We all like to think of hospitals as places in society where people go to get healthier, and for the most part this is true. However, this is not always the case as hospitals can inadvertently become breeding grounds for harmful diseases. The CDC estimates that each and every day, 1 in 31 hospitals will see a healthcare-associated infection (HAI).

Coinciding with a decrease in the viability of antibiotics, HAIs can turn hospitals into hazardous areas for those who are prone to infection. Often, these same individuals are the ones most in need of a hospital’s services. So what can be done?

Antimicrobial Computers Offer A Compelling Solution

While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to HAIs, antimicrobial computers offer one way to minimize the risk of such infections from occurring. Antimicrobial computers are medical computers that are coated with an antimicrobial treatment. This coating causes the medical computer to be deadly to harmful bacteria, much like how the natural properties of copper make the metal germ-phobic. Typically, every medical computer is an antimicrobial computer, but it is important to check beforehand if this is the case. Luckily, at Tangent all of our medical computers are antimicrobial computers and UL60601-Certified.

Are Antimicrobial Computers Safe?

Antimicrobial computers are not only safe, they are some of the safest medical computers out there. Their antimicrobial coating prevents bacteria from breeding and growing on the medical computer’s surface without being harmful to doctors and patients. Antimicrobial computers are perfectly safe to touch, which is one of the reasons why Tangent’s lineup of medical grade computers are all touchscreen enabled. This allows doctors to use these antimicrobial computers without worrying about the bacteria on their hands. Unlike computers reliant on mice and keyboards, antimicrobial medical computers will not become breeding grounds for bacteria.

Are Antimicrobial Computers Easy To Clean?

Not only are antimicrobial computers easy to clean, they are built to be cleaned! While other computers and computer monitors require specialty cleaning agents in order to not be damaged, antimicrobial medical computers are able to be cleaned with traditional cleaning supplies. Regular cleaning does not remove the antimicrobial coating either, ensuring that these medical computers last well past their warranty. What’s more, antimicrobial computers mitigate the growth of harmful bacteria on their surface, meaning that with a cleaning they become nearly germ free.

Antimicrobial Computers: Reduce Your HAIs

If reducing the amount of HAIs in your hospital is a priority, then antimicrobial medical computers may be the solution you are looking for. These advanced medical computers come in various sizes and styles, and can quickly and easily become an indispensable tool for your facility.

 

How To Better Use Your Medical Grade Computer

How To Prevent Critical Electronic Health Records Mistakes

Michelle

There’s no doubt that medical grade computers have made hospitals safer, more productive environments to treat patients. From their antimicrobial coating which mitigates the growth of nosocomial infection causing bacteria to their robust IP certified water resistance, medical grade computers have made a lasting impact on the quality of care provided to patients.

 

Sadly, the same cannot always be said about the software running on these devices. The misuse of medical software such as Electronic Health Records (EHR) can lead to shockingly wrong results. While neither the fault of the software or medical grade computer, mishaps by untrained medical staff using such tools can lead to dangerous outcomes. Here are a few tips to help medical staff prevent errors while using software on their medical grade computers.

 

Be Aware Of Default Settings On Your Electronic Health Record Program

Every EHR program running on a medical grade computer is different, but many have the same features. One similarity that goes unnoticed is their use of default settings and inputs for entry fields. Just like how a website may have a random date filled in for your birthday when signing up, some EHR programs have default numbers filled in for various entry fields. A default drug measurement setting may be present on your EHR program, either by the software provider or your IT department. Make sure that both you and your medical staff are aware of this , as it is entirely possible that they assume the default measurement is correct, and accidentally mis-prescribe a patient.

 

In addition, an unclear medication list present on your EHR program can similarly lead to mis-prescriptions. Medication lists that are hard to read, uninformative, or lack dosing information can lead to medical staff assuming that they are prescribing the correct dosage while in fact doing the opposite. 

 

Train Your Medical Staff Rigorously

EHR programs running on medical grade computers are meant to aid physicians and medical staff, not harm them. While there are problems with these programs, they come from a lack of knowledge and training surrounding the programs. Educate your staff on the presence of default drug measurements, and have your IT department update the default setting to a nonviable integer (such as 0) if possible. Creating a detailed medication list that is both informative and easy to read can also greatly improve EHR usability on medical grade computers. Above all, make sure your staff is regularly refreshed on how to use their EHR program and medical grade computer to their full potential.

 

Avoid Critical Mistakes

Mistakes in the hospital carry consequences not seen in any other sector, and should be avoided at all costs. Making sure that your medical staff is trained to the fullest extent on the use of EHR programs is crucial to providing quality care to patients. Medical technology has always been a force for good, and it is important to treat EHR programs as the medical tools that they are.

How Medical Tablets Can Help Increase Your Efficiency In The Hospital

Boosting Efficiency In Your Hospital

Michelle

While not every healthcare provider is excited about the transition from paper health records to electronic health records (EHR), the amount of time saved by this transition cannot be ignored. When paired with medical tablets, the use of EHRs in the hospital is exponentially faster, allowing medical staff to instantly access patient information wherever they are in the hospital.

 

In fact, 74% of hospitals that utilize medical tablets to collect patient information are more efficient than hospitals that do not according to a Harris Poll commissioned by Ricoh Americas Corporation. In nearly 3 out of 4 hospitals, the use of medical tablets greatly increased efficiency, and it’s easy to see why.

 

Paper Free, Stress Free

Among those surveyed, 77% said that hospital work entails too much paperwork, which cuts into time spent with patients. In an age where the doctor-patient face time is declining, paperwork serves as a barrier between doctors and their real job: helping patients. Without the hassle of creating, editing, and keeping track of paper health records, doctors are able to spend more time with patients, and potentially have more visits in one day. Medical tablets can help alleviate the stress doctors face in the hospital setting, allowing them instant access to EHRs anywhere in the facility. 

 

Clean and Easy

In addition to being slow, paper health records also hold the potential of being breeding grounds for dangerous bacteria responsible for nosocomial infections. Unless every paper touched by medical staff routinely goes under a U.V. light, it’s safe to say these archaic records are anything but clean. Medical tablets are 60601-1 Medical certified and feature an antimicrobial coating which mitigates the growth of harmful bacteria on their surfaces. This allows doctors to focus on their patients without worrying about the potential spread of bacteria. 

 

Medical tablets are also IP65 rated for water and dust resistance, making them both easy to clean and long lasting. With the combination of water resistance and their antimicrobial coatings, medical tablets make the perfect companion for doctors seeing patients with the flu or other spreadable illnesses.

 

The Patient’s Choice

85% of survey respondents said they feel more comfortable in hospitals deploying the latest technology in their healthcare. Medical tablets are on the bleeding edge of medical technology, and their applications in the hospital are growing every day. EHRs are just the beginning, medical tablets can be used in many of the same scenarios that medical computers are used in while also being mobile.

 

An astonishing 60% of respondents said they would rather spend time on the internet attempting to self diagnose a non-life threatening illness than deal with the paperwork associated with going to the hospital. Cutting back on the amount of paperwork in your hospital is crucial to giving patients adequate healthcare, and medical tablets offer a promising alternative.

Medical Computers Are Safer Than Traditional Computers In The Hospital

Dangerous Bacteria In Hospitals

Michelle

When we discuss the prevention of nosocomial infections in the hospital—clostridium difficile (C. diff), Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureu (MRSA), Escherichia coli (E. Coli)— it is important to note all the various ways these diseases are transmitted. From one medical exam room to the next, medical staff carry such diseases across the hospital. It’s already well known that medical staff need to clean the mice and keyboards of their medical computers regularly in order to kill these diseases, however this may not be enough. 

 

In addition to these diseases resisting most traditional cleaning agents, a recent preprint of a Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine paper suggests even the mousepads of medical computers harbor these dangerous bacteria. This calls into question the efficacy of traditional medical computers in general, with every peripheral potentially enabling life threatening diseases. All-in-one medical computers offer a promising solution, eliminating the need for disease carrying peripherals while operating above the level of traditional medical computers.

 

All-In-One Medical Computers: No Dirty Accessories

All-in-one medical computers differ from traditional medical computers in a number of ways, but most notably in their ability to operate without a mouse, keyboard, or mousepad; everything one needs to operate an all-in-one medical computer is localized in the actual medical computer. 

 

All-in-one medical computers feature antimicrobial touchscreens, allowing medical staff to fully utilize their medical computer without the use of a keyboard or mouse. Without these accessories, all-in-one medical computers negate the rampant growth of harmful bacteria and require less cleaning. In addition, all-in-one medical computers come with a durable antimicrobial coat to counter the potential spread of such bacteria. This coating mitigates the growth of bacteria that is transferred to the all-in-one medical computer instead of simply letting the bacteria fester and grow. With an antimicrobial coating, all-in-one medical computers are far more cleaner than their traditional counterparts while also being easier to use.

 

Easier Than Ever

All-in-one medical computers are not only safer than traditional medical computers, they are also easier to use. It may seem counterintuitive that a medical computer without a mouse, keyboard, or mousepad would be easier to interact with but in reality using all-in-one medical computers is a lot like using your own personal phone. Tasks such as scrolling, clicking, and locating information on digital medical charts becomes far less tenuous and nearly second nature. All-in-one medical computers are as easy to use as they are safe, and allow your medical staff to focus solely on their patient’s well being instead of whether their interactions are causing said patient to become more ill.

 

All-In-One Medical Computers: Safe And Easy

With new information coming out every month showcasing how common hospital items can actually harbor dangerous bacteria, staying up to date is more important than ever to mitigate nosocomial infections. All-in-one medical computers offer a compelling solution to the problem of computer accessories harboring such bacteria, eliminating bacteria growth and making the job of medical staff far easier.

medical grade PCs

You Can’t Stop Clostridioides Difficile In The Hospital, But There Is Hope

Michelle

If you work in a hospital, you may be familiar with Clostridioides difficile (C. diff), a bacterium strain that causes antibiotic-resistant infections. While the prospect of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, commonly known as “superbugs,” are scary enough on their own, a new study in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy has given us a new reason to worry about C. diff. The study, spearheaded by Kevin Garey, a professor of pharmacy practice at the University of Houston in Texas, shows that C. diff is highly resistant to seven of the most commonly used cleaning agents in hospitals. So, what can be done to stop C. diff?

The study concluded, ”no disinfectant was able to completely eliminate C. diff embedded within biofilms.” While this was in a laboratory setting, the ramifications of this conclusion are apparent: normal cleaning is not enough to stop C. diff. Surfaces that are regularly cleaned, like those of medical computers, are still at risk of housing superbugs. Even worse, medical grade PCs are constantly being touched by different medical personnel, each potentially spreading or contracting superbug bacteria.

Tangent Medix T19B
Tangent Medix T19B

Luckily, medical grade PCs from Tangent have a few key features built-in that can help ward off potentially infectious superbugs. Tangent’s lineup of medical computers feature an antimicrobial coating, which mitigates the growth of bacteria. While this coating does not outright kill bacteria, it prohibits the growth of it, effectively eliminating newly placed bacteria over time. This allows medical grade PCs from Tangent to be safely handled by multiple medical personnel and reduced the likelihood of a superbug spread. 

Medical computers from Tangent also come equipped with passive cooling technology, which is completely fanless. Without fans, Tangent medical grade PCs reduce the spread of airborne pathogens and do not build up bacteria cesspools in their enclosures over time. Fanless cooling technology allows Tangent medical computers to be fully enclosed, ensuring that they do not contribute to stagnant, germy environments.

medical grade PCs
Medix KW Series

Because of these airtight enclosures, Tangent medical computers are also rated for IP water resistance. This allows them to be easily cleaned with common cleaning agents. While Professor Garey’s study concluded that no regularly used cleaning agents in hospitals were effective at completely killing C. diff, they did find that Clorox, OPA, and Virex were the most effective at reducing C. diff spores. These cleaners, in conjunction with Tangent’s antimicrobial enclosures, can help curtail the growth and spread of superbugs like C. diff.

With antibiotic resistance on the rise everywhere around the globe, it’s more important than ever to keep your hospital as safe as possible from potential superbug infections. Tangent medical grade PCs can help your hospital stay clean, and remain a place for patients to become healthier.

AI Medical Doctor

Will AI Replace Doctors In The Near Future?

Michelle

Every day there seems to be a new artificial intelligence (AI) that can compare our faces to celebrities or swap faces with friends. But recently the New Yorker published a story about how AI could one day take over the news rooms, and the implications of such a feat. AI are becoming increasingly complex, as their capabilities and level of intelligence increase beyond mere entertainment value and into labor value. Given the upward trajectory of AI intelligence, could AI one day take over the medical field, replacing both doctors and medical grade PCs entirely?

 

Can AI Replace Doctors And Medical PCs?

To answer this question, we first have to take a look at what exactly an AI is. Large AI are typically programs on custom built PCs that unlike normal programs, are not created to perform input output operations, but rather to ‘think’ about operations to produce an output. This is how AI filters that can swap faces in real time work, by thinking about what a face is and how they should be swapped instead of merely copy and pasting two faces. Medical grade PCs, on the other hand, typically rely on traditional software for the role of computing power and use Doctors and other medical staff to do the thinking for them. This is where the potential for AI to replace Doctors creeps up, as in theory a sufficiently powerful AI could do the thinking of a Doctor and the operating of a medical grade PC.

 

Are AI more Developed Than Medical PCs?

While this may seem like a scary notion for medical personnel, the good news for them is that medical AI are not as developed as they are marketed as being. The most famous medical AI would have to be IBM’s Watson, which IBM touted as learning how to be the best AI doctor after it successfully displayed its thinking power by winning Jeopardy in 2011. However in the years since, IBM Watson’s delve into the medical field has been over ambitious. In reality, IBM Watson’s capabilities are more in line with being a useful AI powered tool that doctors can access on their medical PCs rather than a complete replacement.

 

One of the reasons for Watson’s failure stems not from the actual AI, but how it(and AI in general) are marketed. AI, despite popular conception, are not actually all that intelligent. In reality, AI are normally trained by teacher programs to pick up on pattern recognitions. They are rewarded or punished for picking answers, and over time learn to pick up on which answers are right. For instance, the AI filter for face swapping probably had to learn to recognize a face in still images, then in video before it even began learned how to swap them. AI like Watson are marketed as learning computers, implying an active learning approach, when it’s more as though they are taught computers.

 

Combining AI And Medical PCs

However, this isn’t to say that AI does not have a valuable place in the medical setting. Medical PCs with access to medical AI can be a great tool for doctors and medical personnel. Researchers from NYU School of Medicine and the NYU Center for Data Science performed a study on the ability of AI to add value to medical diagnoses made by radiologists. What they found was that AI could detect cancer related patterns that the doctors could not, but also that doctors would find patterns new to the AI. In this way, the study suggested that AI tools on medical PCs could help augment medical staff rather than replace them.

 

Medical PCs, Doctors, And AI Working Together

While it may seem like medical AI are the next step in the evolution of Medical pcs, it’s more fair to say that they are the next iteration of software for medical PCs. Large AI, like IBM Watson, are making headway in learning how to diagnose and recognize the patterns of symptoms, and this can directly benefit doctors in many ways. However, relying solely on AI to make these decisions is not reliable. Using AI powered tools on medical PCs is a solid middle ground for the current state of AI, allowing doctors to get second opinions on x-ray images and to make sure their mistakes are kept at a minimum. A combination of doctors, medical AI, and medical PCs can help keep your hospital at the cutting edge of technology while making sure that diagnoses are safe and accurate. Medical PCs from Tangent are are at the edge of medical PC technology, and can help your hospital prepare for the use of AI tools.

Medical Grade Computer Monitor: What is the Meaning?

Michelle

It may be surprising to hear, but calling a monitor “medical grade” isn’t just a marketing tactic. To be a medical monitor, the medical monitor must meet certain legal criteria that allows for the use of the term. These criteria, such as EN/IEC 60601-1 compliance, help keep both patients and doctors safe from workplace hazards. Other features are not legally required, but help maintain a safe and productive work environment in your hospital. These features range from bacteria resistance to touchscreen support, and provide medical personnel with quality of life improvements not found in commercial monitors. Medical monitors are designed specifically for use in the hospital, and their compliance with legal standards and catalogue of features help make them the best choice for hospitals. 

 

Safety Standards

In order to be sold as a medical monitor, a medical monitor must be compliant with the EN/IEC 60601-1 standard from the National Fire Protection Association Health Care Facilities Code (NFPA 99). The IEC 60601-1 standards are used widely across the globe to create electronics that are safe for use in the medical setting. The EN 60601-1 standards are extremely similar to their IEC counterparts, and function as north america’s variant of the code. These safety standards include rules that limit the amount of electrical leakage from medical monitors to 100 microamps, making them safe for use around patients. 

 

Alongside EN/IEC 60601-1 standards, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has its own set of regulations that govern medical monitors. Under 510(k) regulations, medical monitors must be demonstrated to be as effective and safe as a medical monitor that is currently on the market. This set of regulations ensures that ineffective or otherwise low quality monitors are not available on the market as medical monitors, saving hospitals from potentially buying fraudulent medical monitors and harming patients in the process. Some commercial monitors are able to meet these standards, but they are not explicitly designed to do so and may not be as effective as a stand-in medical monitor over time. Commercial grade monitors also do not feature image accuracy software, which is critical for making diagnoses and in the surgery room.

 

Higher Image Accuracy

In the medical setting, computer monitors are not only used for displaying web pages and spreadsheets, but also for showing x-ray images and other diagnostic images. Having these images displayed as accurately as possible is critical to making accurate diagnoses and decisions for care. Experts are still debating on how many colors exactly the human eye can discern, but current estimates put the number around ten million. Tangent’s lineup of medical monitors can display 16.7 million colors, 50% more than is assumed we can currently see. So why have this many colors then? Having this range of color output options allows for greater accuracy matching an image’s true color makeup as the eye would normally see it as if it were printed out. This allows doctors and medical staff to make precise decisions when looking at images and have confidence in their judgement.

 

Most commercial monitors can meet this range of color output, however they do not possess the necessary control system to fully utilize it. Traditional commercial monitors have a manual color control system attached to their monitor normally labeled “brightness control.” While this manual system works fine for home and commercial use, it fails to be useful in the medical setting. Luminance levels vary depending on how long a monitor has been in use, with large shifts occurring from startup to being fully warmed up. If a commercial monitor were to be used in lieu of a medical monitor, one would have to manually adjust the brightness control constantly to maintain image accuracy, all without having a reference point. This would be like tuning a guitar string without knowing what note it is supposed to correspond to.

 

To avoid the discoloration associated with the variance of luminance levels across time, medical monitors today feature Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standards support. Medical monitors that utilize DICOM standards feature technology built into the monitor that actively changes luminance levels to best represent the image on screen as accurately as possible. This automated brightness control system is critical to the medical setting, as it allows for medical monitors to be used with confidence that they are displaying images accurately.

 

Bacteria and Disease Resistance

Diseases contracted in the medical setting, often referred to as nosocomial infections, are a massive concern for hospitals across the country. Not only are such infections a liability for the hospital, but they also go against the purpose of institutions designed to make people healthier. Limiting the spread of nosocomial diseases like MSRA superbugs is critical to hospitals, and therefore critical to medical monitor providers. Tangent’s medical monitors are designed with nosocomial infections in mind and are built to help combat these diseases. 

 

Tangent’s medical monitors feature an antimicrobial additive that is coated onto the monitor’s enclosure directly. This antimicrobial additive helps mitigate the growth of bacteria on the medical monitor’s surface, and thus prevents diseases from forming on the monitor. This is especially useful to Tangent’s medical monitors specifically, as they are fully touch screen enabled. This allows both doctors and nurses to quickly scan medical charts with their fingers without worrying about how many hands have touched the monitor that day. The medical monitors are also IP65 rated water resistant, meaning that it can be easily cleaned with normal cleaning products. The antimicrobial additive is waterproof as well, and will not come off with regular cleaning, making the entire medical monitor safe for regular cleaning. 

 

Medical Monitors: The Safe Choice

Not only do medical monitors meet the legal standards to be sold as medical monitors, they utilize vital features that make them ideal for the medical setting. Using medical monitors in your hospital ensures that patients and doctors are not experiencing abnormal levels of electrical leakage. They also perform critical image accuracy procedures to produce precise pictures on screen for diagnosis. Being touchscreen enabled, medical monitors’ antimicrobial enclosures are critical to helping prevent nosocomial infections. When it comes to the medical setting, it’s clear that medical monitors are necessary tool for safe and accurate computer usage.