DOTmed News: What has been the big takeaway from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa? Do you think that crisis has changed the world's attitude toward infection control in a meaningful and lasting way?

MS: Concern over transmission of the Ebola virus has highlighted the fact that hospitals need to invest in new technologies to get the superbugs out of our hospitals. 100,000 people die in the U.S. every year from an HAI -- and many of these deaths are preventable. The arrival of the Ebola virus in the U.S. served as a wake-up call for infection prevention protocols at U.S. hospitals. While the risk of a patient in a U.S. hospital contracting the Ebola virus is low, the risk is much higher that a patient will contract an infection caused by a superbug that is prevalent in our hospitals right now, like C.diff or MRSA. Infection preventionists have been begging for budgets for new weapons in the battle against deadly superbugs, and now they have the CEO’s attention that more can and should be done to stop the spread of infectious diseases.


The Xenex germ-zapping robots disinfect surfaces, meaning that they can be used as a final measure of protection in making the area where an Ebola or other high-risk patient has been treated safer for the next patient or healthcare worker. They can be used to disinfect rooms, ORs, waiting areas, treatment areas, etc. Hospitals use our robots throughout their entire facility – patient rooms, OR, ICU, Emergency Department, equipment rooms, treatment rooms, even public areas and restrooms.

The Xenex robot is ideal for destroying pathogens on surfaces because it works quickly and efficiently. It is ideal for use in hospitals and healthcare facilities (where rooms need to be turned over quickly) because each robot can disinfect dozens of rooms per day. The robots help hospitals bring down the bacterial load by eliminating the pathogens that cause infections and make patients sick.

DOTmed News: Can you see a future where your product leaves hospital walls and become a fixture in prisons, schools, or even shopping malls? What stands between Xenex and a lofty goal like that?

MS: We definitely see a future where our robots are used in other markets and in other forms. We’re already in use in hospitals, Long Term Acute Care (LTAC) facilities, Skilled Nursing Facilities and outpatient surgery centers (Ambulatory Surgery Centers). We have developed protocols for cruise ships, airlines and professional sports facilities and think we could benefit them tremendously. As awareness of the danger of drug resistant pathogens and the cost of these infections increases, we expect these markets to take off.

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