
Cardinal Health recalls contaminated surgical gowns - DataDrivenMD
https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/statement-quality-issues-certain-cardinal-health-surgical-gowns-and-packs
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DataDrivenMD
While it's too early to tell if any patients were harmed by these contaminated
gowns, the hospitals impacted reads like who's who that includes Stanford,
Stanford Children's, Northwestern, NY Presbyterian, Kaiser, BJC HealthCare,
Rush, Jefferson, and Adventist Health.

In addition to the potential for patient harm, this recall will prove costly
to hospitals, and ultimately patients. I have it on good authority that some
hospitals have been forced to limit the number of elective surgical procedures
as they scramble to secure acceptable replacements. Given that it is common
practice to include these gowns in "surgical packs" (kits of sterile supplies
and equipment used during a procedure), many facilities impacted by this
recall will also need to tear down existing packs, re-sterilize equipment, and
rebuild packs. This is a non-trivial process that takes time and is prone to
human errors that could lead to case delays and/or cancellations.

Big picture: these sort of recalls are more common and widespread than one
would think. In the last year alone, medical devices ranging from baby warmers
to IV infusion pumps were recalled due to serious patient safety issues. For
proof check out [https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-
safety...](https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-
alerts).

Take home point: while it may be trendy to fund biotech startups, it'd be
great to see a VC-backed company disrupt the medical supply chain with the
goal of delivering safer products at lower cost. If someone out there is up
for the challenge, I welcome the opportunity to help.

