In the hospital environment, every piece of equipment plays a crucial role in patient care and staff efficiency. The undercounter refrigerator is no exception. Strategic placement of these compact units plays a pivotal role in ensuring prompt and proper distribution of prescriptions to patients throughout the hospital.
Choosing the right undercounter refrigerator for your nursing floors requires careful consideration of several key factors. In this blog, we will explore four aspects to consider when selecting an undercounter refrigerator for your nursing floors to ensure optimal performance, accessibility, and quality of patient care.
Helps with Diversion Prevention
According to the ASHP, the increased quantity of therapies such as biologics, compounded drugs, and specialty infusions make it very likely the need for special storage and handling practices will increase.
Diversion of medications, vaccines, and other therapies carries serious risk for patients, providers, and hospitals. At a minimum, your on-unit undercounter refrigerators should have some mechanism to protect against diversion.
Many medical-grade undercounter refrigerators are available with physical keys or keypad locks, but for heavily trafficked areas such as nursing floors, standard controls may not be enough. Look for a refrigerator that’s compatible with third-party locking technologies such as Omnicell® Flexlock or BD Pyxis™ QLock or a refrigerator that offers integrated access control.
If space and budget are less of an issue, choosing a purpose-built diversion prevention unit like the BD Pyxis™ ES Refrigerator can help reduce diversion and errors by providing control over medication access.
The main consideration for any refrigerator on the nursing floor is ensuring patients receive proper medication. Access control is an important feature for any undercounter refrigerator or freezer used on the floor.
meets ADA Compliance
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was a victory for promoting accessibility in public spaces and places of employment. One of the changes required by the ADA was the installation of lower countertops, which would allow easier access to those in wheelchairs.
As a result, ADA-compliant countertops have been installed for patients and employees in many locations throughout hospital nursing floors.
With space at a premium on the nursing floor, choosing an undercounter refrigerator or freezer that fits under the ADA-compliant countertops can allow for more efficient equipment planning, allowing refrigerators and freezers to be installed in out-of-the-way locations and maximizing use of space.
Most technical data sheets for small refrigerator units will include information about ADA compliance. Be sure to review the technical data to verify ADA compliance before choosing an undercounter refrigerator.
A Reliable Undercounter Refrigerator
Reliability and durability are critical considerations in the healthcare setting. When choosing an undercounter refrigerator, there are many options to consider at many different price points.
Opting to spend more on a refrigerator with a reputation for quality can help to avoid costly failures and maintenance issues resulting in disruptions in workflow on the floor and loss of valuable medications.
When choosing undercounter refrigerators for your nursing floors, avoid the temptation to choose the cheapest option. Look for brands with a history of reliability and performance during the long term.
an Energy Efficient Undercounter Refrigerator
Many hospitals and health systems are adding sustainability goals to their key metrics. More than 130 health systems have signed the Health Sector Climate Pledge as of April 2024, pledging to reduce organizational emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by 2050.
To reach these goals, hospitals and health systems will require improvements in energy consumption in many places.
Choosing energy efficient equipment can help, especially in the case of undercounter refrigerators for nursing floors, where the sheer volume of equipment means any improvement can make a significant difference when applied to all units in a facility.
When choosing an undercounter refrigerator for your nursing floors, explore ENERGY STAR® certified options to provide reductions in energy consumption. This will help your facility or health system progress toward sustainability goals as well as reduce operational costs associated with energy usage.
Which undercounter refrigerator is best for nursing floors?
The undercounter refrigerator that works best for your nursing floors will vary depending on the layout of your facility, the intended purpose of the refrigerator, and the overall goals of your facility, but any option should at least include these features:
- Be medical-grade.
- Include some sort of diversion prevention mechanism or be compatible with a third-party option.
- Fit under ADA-compliant countertops if applicable.
- Be reliably built with the ability to stand up to frequent openings and closings (even if it means the units are more expensive).
- Be considered energy efficient to reduce costs and help achieve sustainability goals.
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GX Solutions Undercounter Refrigerators for nursing floors
Helmer Scientific GX Solutions undercounter refrigerators are purpose-built to provide superior temperature stability, uniformity, and recovery, which is especially important with frequent openings on nursing floors.
Helmer GX Solutions undercounter refrigerators, like all Helmer cold storage, undergo a rigorous testing process called Accelerated Life Testing during the design process to ensure readiness to stand up to the punishment of day-to-day use in the clinical environment. This testing allows Helmer to develop cold storage solutions that provide lasting quality and performance over an extended service life.
GX Solutions undercounter refrigerators are ENERGY STAR® certified and can reduce energy consumption by 50 percent compared to traditional refrigeration technologies.
Each unit is built to fit comfortably beneath ADA-compliant 34” countertops. There is also an option for integrated access control.
To view our undercounter refrigerator options, visit our website.
