A new syringe was designed by students and teachers of the Nursing School of Coimbra (ESEnfC). This syringe has the potential to revolutionize hospital nursing and is now being developed by a national consortium led by Muroplás - Indústria de Plásticos, S.A. in collaboration with ESEnfC and PIEP - Innovation in Polymer Engineering Campus.
The DUO syringe is a sequentially-dispensing dual-chamber syringe which aims at improving clinical practices in the administration of medications or fluids.
The new medical device will enable the dispensing and intravenous administration of two different fluids – medication and flushing solution – in sequence, without the need to change syringes.
Fewer syringes and less hospital waste are other benefits of this new device
The advantages for public health resulting from the use of the DUO syringe include reduced risk of infection by reducing catheter handling, increased patient comfort and well-being (fewer injection procedures), and reduced possibility of human error in the administration of therapeutic agents.
Other advantages include economic benefits for health institutions (fewer syringes used and more time available for professionals), as well as the reduction of costs associated with patient treatment and in hospital waste.
The performance of the DUO syringe will be assessed through usability trials and simulation in specialized laboratories, followed by a period of safety and efficacy testing.
The DUO syringe project is co-funded by COMPETE 2020, within the scope of the “Research and Technological Development” Incentive Scheme for co-promotion projects, with an incentive from FEDER (European Fund for Regional Development) of around 516,000 Euros for an eligible investment of 718,000 Euros
In addition to education/training and provision of services to the community, the ESEnfC develops experimental research in the area of healthcare technologies with a view to promoting innovation and knowledge transfer and improving health outcomes.
[2017-03-01]
