QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Set out below are some of the preliminary questions and answers regarding a COMTEX Operating Room Textiles Study.

What facilities will need to be visited by the O.R. study consultants, and who will be visiting these facilities?

One principal and two nurses from the consulting firm will need to visit each hospital facility as well as COMTEX in order to complete the study. The nurse consultants each possess many years of OR experience. Meetings will need to be scheduled through a contact person selected by each facility.

What information will be requested before, during and after the interviews and who should coordinate these responses to the consultants?

Prior to the visit, a written survey will be sent to each of the facility contacts asking three basic types of questions.

1. What surgical linen packs do you use now, both reusable and disposable, and what are the quantities, costs, and contents of these packs?
2. How many annual surgical procedures does each facility provide per year by category?
3. What equipment is currently used and what is the current cost for the laundering and sterilization of operating room textiles.

Who and what specific areas at the facilities will need to interviewed or visited?

At COMTEX the consultants will:

• Review current cost per pound, and total annual cost, of any existing re-usable surgical linen in use.
• Evaluate the capital requirements for a new system, such as added washers, dryers, sterilizers, carts, bins, shelves, delivery trucks.
• Recommend a budget per piece price to process new barrier surgical linens.
• Review the site of a potential new pack room and provide an estimated capital cost for construction and commissioning.
• In conjunction with COMTEX, recommend hourly labor rates and benefit costs for a new pack room staff.

At the facilities the chief consultant will:

• Determine the cost of any reusable surgical linen systems currently in use, including linen cost, labor cost, sterilization cost or pack rental costs.
• Identify all details of the disposable system, by pack, usage, contents, and cost.
• Review the Central Supply Department’s ability to sterilize the packs for the new system, including capital, and operational cost per sterilizer run.
• Estimate what a reasonable cost per pound would be for the Central Supply department to charge for steam sterilization if capacity exists.
• Evaluate space in Central Supply departments for product cool-down and for sterile pack storage.

At the facilities the O.R. nurses will:

• Identify, by conducting staff interviews with Operating Room Team Leaders, what surgical products are currently ordered, opened, and actually used for each type of surgery.
• Work with the hospitals to demonstrate sample reusable products, to determine the best drape design and pack configuration for the hospital.
• Eventually nurses would need to work with all departments that will use the reusable packs, including, Main O.R., Outpatient O.R., OBS., Cardiac Cath Lab, and Invasive Radiology.

How long will each interview take?

The consultants will require 2-3 hours with COMTEX management and approximately 1-2 hours with each Central Supply Department manager.

The nurse consultants will need to be at each hospital for 1 to 2 days. They will need approximately 30 minutes with an individual nurse clinician from each specialty to discuss each of the surgical specialties.

When will the interviews be scheduled and how much notice will facilities be provided?

Given reasonable notice the schedule for interview with the consultants can be established at the convenience of each facility. It is hoped that the study will be conducted in the month of January 2005.

What is the anticipated timeframe for the completion of the O. R. study and what are the next steps?

The consultants will require approximately three weeks after the site visits to complete their analysis and report. The findings will first be presented to the COMTEX Board and Management for further direction.

What criteria will be used to make recommendations as to future O.R. textile products and services?

The consultants will be instructed to recommend, that only the best O.R. products available, be utilized for a COMTEX Clean Room Service. Where the best alternative is a disposable product, we have been assured that their recommendation will be for the continued use of a disposable product.

COMTEX intends to proceed with a positive recommendation, only if it is possible to establish a superior O.R. service that includes an extensive Quality Assurance program at a lower total annual system cost.

How will the information be compiled and shared and will it be kept confidential?

All facility price, cost and operational information will be kept confidential. Reports will be forward to the COMTEX Board of Directors and management only.