NORMAN, Okla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Eleven germ-fighting robots are descending upon central Oklahoma this week to fight germs including the flu virus in local schools.
The Xenex LightStrike® Germ-Zapping Robot is a UV disinfection robot. The robot uses a pulsed xenon lamp to create intense germicidal ultraviolet (UV) light that quickly kills the germs that cause serious infections such as influenza, C.difficile, MRSA and more.
For the past two years, Norman Regional Health System has used its four LightStrike robots daily to enhance safety by disinfecting patient rooms and other hospital areas. The hospital teamed up with Xenex Disinfection Services to borrow an army of Germ-Zapping Robots™ that are being used at area schools this week. The robots will be deployed to schools in the Norman, Moore and Noble public school districts to disinfect classrooms, restrooms, and other areas where germs may lurk. Richie Splitt, president and CEO of Norman Regional, said since the hospital had seen great results, it wanted to share the robots’ capabilities with the community.
“Norman Regional is committed to improving the health of our community, both inside and outside our hospital doors. If we could provide a robot in every classroom we would, but we’re doing the next best thing by sending 11 robots to our partners at local schools to fight the flu,” Splitt said. “As a healthcare provider, we’ve seen how illness can spread quickly and we know that children learn better when they are healthy. Through this partnership with Xenex and local schools we are helping to keep our kids, educators, and parents healthy.”
“We appreciate Norman Regional Health System for their continued partnership and their commitment to proactively addressing student health,” said Dr. Nicholas Migliorino, superintendent of Norman Public Schools. “This is just another example of how students in Norman Public Schools benefit from the robust support of our community.”
“Norman Regional is dedicated to creating the safest environment possible and we are extremely proud to help them protect the communities that they serve. Xenex is the global leader in UV disinfection for healthcare facilities and our Germ-Zapping Robots are highly effective against the resistant pathogens that challenge our cities and our hospitals the most: C.diff, MRSA, norovirus and influenza. Through our combined efforts this week, we are proactively making a safer environment for all of these students and teachers. Families in these school districts should be thankful to have a health system so dedicated to their well-being,” said Matt Crowe, territory manager for Xenex.
After this week, the extra robots will return to Xenex, but Norman Regional will keep its four permanent robots at their homes in Norman Regional Hospital and the Norman Regional HealthPlex. The robots have been in use in these hospitals since June 2016. The health system has seen a remarkable reduction in infections since the beginning of the program.
