February 13, 2017 LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Healthcare associated infections (HAI) are a global problem and NHS Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt recently launched new plans to reduce infections in the NHS. Speakers representing NHS Improvement, NHS England and Public Health England will share their thoughts and plans during Knowlex’s Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) conference on February 22, 2017 in London. In preparation for the event, the Knowlex team carefully sought new technologies for infection prevention and selected Xenex LightStrike™ Germ-Zapping Robots™ to present at their exclusive invitation-only event on ultraviolet (UV) light room disinfection technology.

“Our mission is to seek, research and procure ideas, innovations and best practices to share with healthcare professionals. We are bringing together experts to discuss best practices for putting a stop to the infections caused by dangerous microorganisms residing in healthcare facilities and when we looked at the UV disinfection providers, Xenex clearly stood apart from many others. Multiple hospitals have experienced 50-100 percent decreases in their infection rates and published their results in peer-reviewed journals after using Xenex’s pulsed xenon UV technology to disinfect their facilities,” said Paul Anthony, Conference Producer for Knowlex.

LightStrike is ideal for use in hospitals worldwide because Xenex has patented protocols for use in multi-bed wards. The robot’s speed enables it to disinfect areas and rooms quickly so it can be used throughout the entire facility, including multi-bed wards, to enhance patient and healthcare worker safety.

Knowlex is an organization dedicated to disseminating information on research and innovative practices to help healthcare professionals in their working lives. Its objective is to help all organisations involved in health – acute trusts, CCGs, and local authorities – to become more efficient and effective in delivering better outcomes for the public.

Another important differentiator between room disinfection technologies is the fact that Xenex devices use pulsed xenon, a noble gas, to create UV-C light. Other UV providers use mercury bulbs to create single-spectrum continuous UV-C light. Mercury UV technology has not been proven to bring down infection rates in multiple facilities and because mercury is toxic, most hospitals are avoiding the use of mercury in their facilities.

Dr. Mark Stibich, co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Xenex, will present a workshop “No-Touch Disinfection: The New Frontier in Patient Safety” during the conference, where he will review current methods for no-touch disinfection for the hospital environment with a focus on evidence for clinical outcomes.

“Antibiotic resistance and HAIs are real threats today – in the UK and around the world. But when you remove the pathogens from the patient environment, infections and antibiotic use are reduced. We want hospital professionals to understand best practices for implementing UV disinfection in their facilities to stop the transmission of HAIs and enhance patient safety,” said Dr. Stibich.

For more information on the 2017 Infection Prevention and Control conference, visit http://www.infectioncontrol2017.co.uk/

LightStrike is designed for speed, effectiveness and ease of use, which allows hospital cleaning staff to operate the robot without disrupting hospital operations. With a four- or five-minute disinfection cycle (depending on robot model), the robot can disinfect 30-62 hospital rooms per day (according to Xenex customers), including patient rooms, operating rooms, equipment rooms, emergency rooms, intensive care units and public areas. More than 400 hospitals, Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, skilled nursing, ambulatory surgery centers and long-term acute care facilities in the U.S., Africa, Canada, UK and Europe use Xenex robots for room disinfection.


Xenex Disinfection Services
Xenex's patented Full SpectrumTM pulsed xenon UV room disinfection system is used for the advanced disinfection of healthcare facilities. Due to its speed and ease of use, the Xenex system has proven to integrate smoothly into hospital cleaning operations. Xenex's mission is to save lives and reduce suffering by eliminating the deadly microorganisms that cause hospital acquired infections (HAIs). The company is backed by well-known investors that include Malin Corporation, Battery Ventures, Targeted Technology Fund II, Tectonic Ventures and RK Ventures. For more information, visit Xenex.com.