December 14, 2011 — Flagstaff Medical Center (FMC) has begun enrollment for a new program, Care Beyond Walls and Wires, an initiative extending patient care beyond the walls of the hospital or physician's office. In collaboration with Qualcomm Inc., and its Wireless Reach initiative — along with Zephyr Technology, Verizon Wireless, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) — the program uses advanced 3G wireless technology and health-monitoring devices to enhance patient care for congestive heart failure (CHF) or other related conditions.

December 12, 2011 – Hansen Medical UK Ltd., a subsidiary of Hansen Medical Inc., a developer of robotic technology for accurate 3-D control of catheter movement, announced a new multi-center worldwide survey evaluating the safety and efficacy of atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation by robotic navigation with the Sensei robotic catheter system. The abstract was presented by Luigi Di Biase, M.D., Ph.D., in a poster session at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2011 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida on November 14th, 2011.

December 9, 2011 — Maquet announced Thursday it has restructured its U.S. Sales and Services Unit to meet the broader needs of customers across all areas of clinical care. As part of this restructuring, the company now offers a comprehensive disease therapy team dedicated to servicing customers who are building a hybrid operating room (OR).

December 9, 2011 — The American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) and the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA) have released a new performance guideline for heightening the use of ultrasound in guided vascular cannulation. The process involves the insertion of a catheter, or tube, into a major vein or artery. The guideline also contains recommendations on training for these life-saving procedures.