Infection prevention hits home for CEO
Company specializes in tech to prevent institution-acquired infections, which he knows all about
Barry Hunt has been advocating for better infection prevention measures in hospitals for years.
Now, he’s living that very nightmare.
Hunt’s previous company, Class 1 Inc., had a division dedicated to engineered infection prevention technology that he’s since spun off into a separate business called Prescientx.
The Cambridge startup co-develops and markets technologies ranging from the relativelystraightforward (copper-coated antimicrobial toilet seats) to the complex (automated ultraviolet disinfection systems using smart sensor technology).
Hunt believes that these sorts of measures could cut the number of healthcare-acquired infections in Canada in half, saving lives, freeing up beds, and reducing costs. And the statistics are startling — the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, established by Health Canada, estimates that about 220,000 people acquire such an infection each year.
Hunt’s now one of those statistics. He went into the hospital last year for a knee replacement, and emerged with an infection. He’s had two subsequent surgeries, currently walks with a cane — “and I won’t know for another year whether I’m out of the woods.”
The irony, he said, “is unbelievable.” If anything, his experience only reinforces his commitment to the cause. “When I see a problem, I just try and fix it.”
Prescientx currently has four employees and recently moved into an 8,800-square-foot space on Maple Grove Road. The office is a showroom for some of the technologies, including a mock hospital room outfitted with antimicrobial surfaces, ozonated water sinks, and fixed and mobile UV disinfection systems.
Staff and visitors are even fever-screened when they arrive at the office, with a touchless face scanner determining body temperature.
When it comes to preventing infections in hospitals and other health-care settings, Hunt said automatic UV disinfection systems in patient bathrooms provide “the biggest bang for your buck.” These systems employ motion detectors, magnetic door contacts and a microprocessor to deliver a five-minute dose of UVC (short-wavelength ultraviolet light) when the bathroom is unoccupied with the door closed.
Prescientx said MRSA and C. difficile infections are reduced by 99 to 99.9 per cent when thorough cleaning known as terminal cleaning is combined with UV room disinfection.
The company is a founding member of CHAIR Canada (Coalition for Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction), a group of academic, health care and industry partners with a goal of reducing preventable infections by 80 per cent by 2024. Hunt is the group’s chair. Hunt has worked with the University of Waterloo and St. Mary’s General Hospital in Kitchener, among others, in testing infection prevention equipment. Prescientx’s primary markets are Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. “The need is everywhere,” he said.
He’s frustrated by what he sees as a slow adoption of new technology in Canada; financial penalties to American hospitals with high infection rates mean prevention is a top priority.
In Canada, “cost is not the barrier,” Hunt said. “Legacy is the barrier.”
Still, he’s optimistic the tide is turning, and that more attention is being paid to preventing, rather than reacting to, infections. A new standard on cleaning and disinfection of health care facilities from the Canadian Standards Association is expected this spring.
“The research is proving now that it works.”