All medical devices and equipment found in facilities across the nation should be identified by a medical label. A medical label differs from a standard product label. These are designed specifically to withstand a hospital environment and to provide any relevant data that doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals may need to know about equipment, medicine, or other tools of the trade.
Equipment is often shuffled constantly throughout these facilities, requiring the need for durable and high-quality labels. Medical labels also carry unique device identifiers (UDI) for identification of medical equipment, safety information, device rating plates, compliance and regulatory identification symbols, and other information necessary for hospital use.
While medical labels are designed with durability and functionality in mind, there is some variation in the various solution options. Medical labels are typically customizable to the intended application, available in the format, shape, or size needed for the specific piece of equipment.
Applications and Uses for Medical Labels
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires proper labeling of all medical equipment. These regulations require that the identification, use, and application of medical devices be clearly labeled and accessible by anyone using the equipment.
Labeling should offer more than just a standard identification label for a piece of equipment. The information required on medical labels may often be limited or extensive, depending on the device type and intended application. Labels are found on any piece of medical equipment, no matter their size or function. Both simple and complex medical devices require identification through labels of this type.
They can be developed to include any information that is pertinent to the equipment, the processes it supports, instructions for use, and any other data relevant to patient safety. If medical equipment requires additional instructions, multiple layers can be added to the label to ensure that all essential information is included in accordance with the law and the requirements of a facility’s medical staff.
The most common data displayed on medical labels typically includes instructions on how to properly operate the equipment mitigate the risk of improper operation by users. It is essential that anyone operating a piece of medical equipment be thoroughly aware of what it is, what its uses are, and how to properly operate it. In order to make medical professionals properly aware of all relevant equipment information in an environment containing a diverse array of medical equipment, the use of durable labels is required.
Durable labels are meant for equipment that is used in an uncommon environment, such as those featuring extreme temperatures, humidity or moisture, or where equipment may be exposed to harsh cleaning chemicals. Durable labels are often recommended for any equipment that is subject to specific certifications or compliance, such as CE, CSA, and UL.
Techprint Capabilities
Techprint has a variety of printing capabilities to produce quality medical device labels of myriad shapes, sizes, and functions. We offer the following printing technologies to produce labels in a wide range of types and volumes:
Screen Printing
Screen printing is used for a variety of industrial printing purposes. This process is ideal for producing multilayer labels with overlay graphics or durable labels required for medical equipment. The screen printing process also allows a variety of different substrate materials to be used.
Flexographic Printing
Primarily used for branding and product identification, flexographic printing uses a variety of colors and material types to facilitate branding for corporations and manufacturers, making their equipment clearly identifiable. Flexographic printing is ideal for high-volume label applications, such as product packaging labels, serialization labels, and date of manufacturing labels.
Digital Printing
Digital printing offers an ideal solution for low volume orders and labeling or branding of equipment. Digital printing features a variety of options, including various ink types and thermal transfer.
Converting Capabilities
Techprint also offers a range of value-added converting processes, such as laminating, adhesive fabrication, laser cutting, die cutting, and packaging.
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Why Techprint
When creating medical device labels, it is essential to not only provide the necessary information required by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but to also invest in the quality of the label itself. The environment in which the medical equipment will be stored and used and the amount of information necessary will determine the material, size, and type label required.
The experts at Techprint can help you determine which printing method and label type is appropriate for your medical equipment application. Our certifications include ISO 9001, IPC, CSA, ESD, UL and RoHS.
For more information about medical labels or our printing services, please contact us.