Whitney Medical Solutions
Turning Ideas into Solutions for Contamination- Free Laboratories

Numerous lab technicians around the globe put their lives at risk while diligently and methodically testing various hazardous materials each day. Regardless of the size of a lab, safety and quality standards remain the same, leaving no room for errors when it comes to workers’ safety and ensuring a contamination-free work environment. However, laboratory waste management poses complicated challenges that often require effective solutions to ensure safe, streamlined operations. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, awareness about core health issues and the importance of maintaining good hygiene has acquired precedence, resulting in an increase in demand for the proper disposal of medical waste. Despite several laws and guidelines for the proper handling of medical waste, today’s overtaxed healthcare system necessitates innovative solutions that offer more than just risk-free waste management.

This is where Whitney Medical Solutions (WMS) steps up with its compact and disposable solutions that are designed to ensure maximum safety for lab workers. The Illinois-based company is a designer and manufacturer of laboratory products, disposable surgical instruments, and disposable electronic device covers. A family-owned company, WMS has been in business since 1984 and was established on the ideals of making the lab staff’s job as safe and simple as possible. The company’s products are designed to align with the hygiene and safety needs in a laboratory environment. “Our mission is to provide innovative solutions in the form of products that benefit healthcare professionals every day. Our products are typically specialty items that are designed to provide handy, easy, and convenient methods for collecting waste at the point of generation in a laboratory with as small a footprint as possible,” says Steve Whitney, President at WMS.

Whitney mentions that when WMS came into existence, the medical waste management landscape was like the “Wild West” with minimal regulations and procedures for the safety of healthcare workers. However, the introduction of the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1991 was a turning point for the industry.

The new industry standard also meant that laboratories had to maintain regular cleaning schedules and document them. With WMS’ disposable product s—Biohazard Waste Containers, Prescription Drug Containers, Test Tube Racks, Broken Glass Waste Containers, and more—lab technicians can eliminate the tedious task of maintaining records by conveniently disposing of the products when contaminated.

Constantly looking to fulfill unmet customer needs, WMS started developing a larger version of one of its existing products, the Pipet Keeper™, when feedback from the market suggested the need for larger storage capacity. To this end, WMS designed the Pipet Keeper™ XL with 75 percent more storage capacity than the regular Pipet Keeper™. The company’s Safe-Keeper™, a leak-resistant, hanging, disposable biohazard waste container, is designed to meet the needs of modern laboratories and enables lab technicians to collect biohazardous waste right at their workstations without cluttering benchtops.

WMS also uses renewable resources for its products wherever possible. “We use paperboard for its renewability, and our products are poly-lined for liquid resistance and safety. We try to avoid plastics when possible but incorporate them as necessary, as certain characteristics of plastic are just not realizable with other materials,” notes Whitney. In addition, all of WMS’ products follow decontamination protocols and most can be autoclaved when required and disposed of according to local, state, or federal regulations. The company is also set to launch a disposable tray for phlebotomists who are required to visit isolation rooms.

Despite being a small company, WMS is agile and takes pride in its responsiveness and flexibility. The company quickly reacts to situations and often cultivates ideas for new products based on customer experiences and feedback. In addition, the company also offers a portal on its website where customers can submit their ideas for new products. These characteristics allow WMS to deliver user-friendly products with unique features that benefit the customers and differentiate the company from its competitors.

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, WMS has launched several products to support lab workers, such as disposable test tube racks, non-sterile covers for cell phones, and infection control-related products. “Proper handling and disposal of medical waste has never been more important. The pandemichas put the global healthcare system under extreme pressure. Our focus is to continue designing and manufacturing products that help prevent the spread of such viruses,” says Whitney.