Medical Device Informatics Overview

Developed in 2010, the Regenstrief National Center for Medical Device Informatics (REMEDI) is a flagship software solution that collects infusion pump data from a broad range of manufacturers.

REMEDI is an evidence-based collaborative with a stated vision: "To be a vibrant, resourceful and collaborative community that advances and promotes infusion pump medication administration in the interest of patient safety and quality." The mission and primary action of the collaborative is to conduct activities that improve patient safety and quality of healthcare delivery such as providing a vendor neutral database of hospital-provided smart infusion pump data, collaborative engagements that allow for sharing of general insights and best practices, and research opportunities to move patient safety forward.

Why Infusion Pumps?

According to the FDA, in a 5-year period between 2005 - 2009, there were 56,000 adverse events and numerous deaths associated with infusion devices (www.fda.gov/InfusionPumps). Smart infusion pumps, which contain a library of medications with dosing guidelines to ensure safe intravenous medication use by preventing over and under dosing, were in use by 72.9% of hospitals in 2013 (doi: 10.2146/ajhp140274). Since many hospital patients receive infusions, the REMEDI project was initiated in response to the national priority to improve patient safety for infusion pumps and to a request from the Indianapolis Coalition for Patient Safety.

The Database and Community

With over 37 million alerts and compliance data representing nearly 160 million infusions, the database provides pharmacists, and other clinicians, evidence to make informed decisions related to infusion pump medication administration. Hospital users submit the following types of infusion pump data to REMEDI: 1) alert data generated when the clinician programs the pump outside the limits of the Dose Error Reduction Software (DERS); 2) the compliance data indicating how often clinicians use the smart pump features; 3) their hospitals' drug limit libraries; and 4) operational alarm data. Tools within the system allow REMEDI members to look at their data in unique and different ways to gather robust insights, as well as allow for deep dive analysis and benchmarking of other hospitals' pump data. To learn more, visit catalyzecare.org.

The Future of REMEDI

In May 2022, the REMEDI program, housed within the Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering, joined in a collaborative partnership with Bainbridge Health, allowing the REMEDI program to benefit from the infusion pump expertise at Bainbridge Health while retaining its academic roots for diverse research. The partnership will continue its history of leveraging the voice of the clinicians to drive future enhancements and community offerings, while providing a free resource to ensure access by all who are committed to patient safety.