“Futureproof” your keyboard investment in Healthcare

“Futureproof” refers to the ability of something to continue to be of value into the distant future without requiring reinvestment of resources and/or time. Taking the approach of buying lower quality product up front may lead to unforeseen costs down the road. Keyboards are now deployed throughout the hospital at every Point of Care. Today’s Healthcare environment requires that high touch surfaces be disinfected regularly to combat cross contamination. These EPA approved disinfectants may contain alcohol, hydrogen peroxide bleach and are abrasive to surfaces. Patient re-admissions have been associated with environmental surface contamination especially with multi-user surfaces like keyboards at nurses’ stations, carts, wall mounts and bedside. Consider the long run when making purchase related to keyboards, it shouldn’t always be low quality products to save money on the front end. A low quality purchase will fail more often escalating the true cost of ownership especially in today’s Healthcare environment.

The replacement cost entails: down workstation, a Full-time IT staff person to inspect the issue (est hourly cost $40/hr), pull a replacement out of stock or issue a PO for a new replacement. Deploying the replacement unit and subject that unit to the same environment that caused the first failure (the cycle repeats).

If the keyboard you’re thinking about purchasing is to be used often, it will often pay to buy something of quality that won’t wear out as fast. In Healthcare you have two basic choices, open style/plastic or sealed/silicone. For non-clinical areas plastic keyboards are ok as long as the deck is closed to prevent bio-burden from failing in between the keys. Some of the keyboards in this space tend to be less expensive, but tend to be more gimmicky and aren’t supported by any factual documentation (a falsehood). For example, there is no proof that any keyboard is antimicrobial, or can be put into a mechanical washer because the water temperature of mechanical washers in hospitals are too hot. Avoid these at all cost because they will create a false sense of security, so why invest in something that can’t support its own claims. For low cost investment, plastic keyboards have a place in Healthcare as long as they have a closed deck, locking feature, so the keys can be wiped and washable (see LCOOL/W7).

If you really want to save money and invest in quality—there are times when it makes sense to spend more money, so you don't run into back end costs. Sealed/Silicone keyboards are truly the best investment for the long term (Futureproofing). These keyboards prevent bio-burden and gross contaminants from falling in between the keys and are relatively flat. However there is an adjustment time needed to typing on this type of surface and most silicone are porous which may susceptible to the abrasive disinfectants. The Truth with silicone keyboards can be found in the keystroke rating and warranty. Some companies have low key stroke rating of >100,000 with an unclear warranty if you read the small print. This obviously exposes the sub-par design of that product which is why it is low quality, low price.

Man & Machine has been a leader in this industry since 1982. Our sealed silicone premium Medical Grade? keyboard line is built in the US and built to last. Our keystroke rating is greater than any other import and supported by an ltd “Lifetime Warranty”. There is no “Overclocking” risk with this product line because of the quality of the design and manufacturing. The feature and benefits are too many to mention (see RCLP/W7) also supported with the best customer service available. These keyboards can be terminally cleaned (sealed, submersible and take 1:10 bleach) which makes it the best keyboard option for the Operating Room, ICU, Emergency Room and Healthcare in general.

"Futureproof", means you won't have to buy another one for a long time, that’s what you get with Man & Machine premium Medical Grade? products.