By Liz White, UT contributing editorSt Paul, Minnesota-Smiths Medical MD Inc. has signed a three-year multi-source contract with Premier Purchasing Partners LP under which Smiths Medical's CliniCath catheters will be offered to Premier's large number of healthcare providers in the US. CliniCath catheters have high radiopacity, allowing easy catheter tip verification using x-ray or fluoroscopy. They are also made of PolyFlow polyurethane which, Smith said, "allows a small outer diameter for less vessel trauma and a large inner diameter for greater flow rates than the same size of comparable silicone [rubber] catheters." Catheters made of polyurethane are also "firm when outside the body for ease of insertion, and soft at body temperature," the Smiths statement added. "We are pleased to enhance our relationship with Premier and this agreement is timed perfectly as we launch our new Piccolo ultrasound system that assists clinicians in placing PICC lines into vascular areas," said Jeanette Bousquet, vice president of sales at Smiths Medical, quoted in the company statement.Smiths Medical MD, headquartered in St Paul, makes medical devices used in infusion therapy. Its products include infusion pumps, implantable access systems, dialysis and infusion catheters, needles, and insulin delivery systems. Premier is a strategic US healthcare alliance, owned by nearly 200 leading hospital and healthcare systems, which operate or are affiliated with some 1500 hospital facilities in 50 states and hundreds of other care sites. "
