Access for Life

The Challenge: Vascular access in chronic care patients, e.g. hemodialysis, results in clinical complications with significant patient morbidity, mortality and greater healthcare costs. Dialysis patients undergo treatments at least three times/week, 4 hours a session, requiring nurses/technicians to “blindly” stick needles (cannulation) into high flow veins, i.e. Arteriovenous (AV) fistulas/grafts. There have been no significant innovations in vascular access for over 50 years. The Solution: The JEM™ unique, patented Smart device will become the “Gold Standard” for safe venous access and preservation of the AV fistula or graft and real-time data gathering. It is expected to greatly reduce the costs of repair and replacement of AV fistulas. The JEM™ is an easy-to-use, safe “Smart” device that acts as a needle guide to safely direct a needle into the vein, avoiding vessel damage and reducing patient pain. The JEM™ allows less skilled caregivers to assist patients, or the patients themselves, to cannulate safely and simply. It encourages home and self-care hemodialysis and can use a blunt needle, which results in less pain to the patient. The JEM™ transmits “monitoring data” on the patient’s vascular system to warn of serious changes that could compromise fistula function. The embedded sensors also gather real-time data on the dialysis process, e.g. patient blood flow and diagnostic information to help predict and prevent major dialysis risks. E.g. indicating possible locations of stenosis and avoiding occlusion. This is digital health at its best. The JEM represents a completely disruptive and innovative breakthrough in the field of repetitive vascular access. It will become the “Gold Standard” for safe venous access, preservation of the AV fistula or graft and real-time data gathering. It is expected to greatly reduce the costs of repair and replacement of AV fistulas, thereby saving healthcare system costs.