Latest news with #Versed

Versed enters specialty retail with launch at Ulta Beauty

Fashion Network

02-07-2025

Business
Fashion Network

Versed enters specialty retail with launch at Ulta Beauty

Clean skincare and makeup brand Versed has officially expanded into Ulta Beauty. The move marks a milestone for the brand as it enters specialty retail for the first time, bringing its best-selling lineup to over 300 Ulta Beauty stores across the U.S. and online. Versed's Ulta Beauty debut includes a curated selection of the brand's best-selling skincare and makeup essentials, all priced at $20.99 and under, such as the Dew Point Gel-Cream Moisturizer, Press Restart Gentle Retinol Serum, and Weekend Glow Brightening Eye Gel, alongside its viral makeup collection. "Launching makeup has been a longtime vision of mine for the Versed brand—grounded in our years of leadership in clean, effective skincare,' said Katherine Power, founder, Versed. 'The incredible response from our community confirmed what I've always known: People with sensitive skin are underserved when it comes to high-performing, affordable makeup. Expanding into Ulta Beauty is a major milestone in meeting our customer where she's already shopping for beauty.' Founded in 2019, Versed gained popularity as the first digitally incubated drugstore skincare brand to debut in mass retail. Since then, it has built a loyal community through its data-driven, community-led approach to product development. "We're incredibly excited to welcome Versed to our skincare and makeup assortment this summer," added Kaitlin Rinehart, vice president of merchandising, Ulta Beauty. "Since Versed's debut over five years ago, we've been inspired by their mission to redefine beauty standards by delivering high-performance skincare and makeup options that are accessible and effective. We are thrilled to be a part of their next phase of growth, allowing even more beauty lovers to discover the brand's viral makeup assortment, along with their bestselling skincare solutions."

Fashion Network

02-07-2025

Business
Fashion Network

Versed enters specialty retail with launch at Ulta Beauty

I Wore This Tinted Sunscreen in Place of Foundation Every Day on My Turks and Caicos Vacation—and It's Only $20

Travel + Leisure

21-06-2025

Travel + Leisure

I Wore This Tinted Sunscreen in Place of Foundation Every Day on My Turks and Caicos Vacation—and It's Only $20

As a carry-on-only packer, I approach my toiletry bag with a discerning eye. While I love a full glam moment—after all, I've been a writer and editor at women's lifestyle magazines for over a decade—I like to keep things simple on vacation. A smaller makeup bag also leaves more room for other travel essentials (like extra shoes and spare outfits, of course). So when Versed's Multi-serum Skin Tint SPF 40 launched, I was instantly intrigued. I've trusted Versed for years. The brand consistently delivers effective skincare at an approachable price, and its skin tint combines foundation and mineral SPF 40 into one multitasking base layer to create a lightweight no-brainer for beach vacations. It's formulated with reef-safe zinc oxide and hyaluronic acid adds a boost of hydration. $20 at Target $20 at I took it with me on a recent trip to Turks and Caicos. Bringing a brand-new product on vacation is always a bit of a gamble, but I was impressed from the first use. The texture is thicker than my usual foundation, but it is still smooth and blendable. I'd compare it more to a full-coverage foundation than a tinted moisturizer, which means you need less product than expected, and it doesn't feel greasy or leave a white cast. It sank right in and didn't feel heavy, all while covering redness and acne scars, so I didn't feel the need to layer any other makeup on top. I wore it for a full day in the sun, and the full coverage helped me feel protected from the intense UV index. Even speeding through the turquoise water in high winds, it didn't pill or sweat off. I reapplied a more traditional sunscreen later in the day (for convenience), but when I got back to my villa, my skin still looked blurred, and I hadn't burned. $20 at Target $20 at Another reason this National Rosacea Society-approved product earned a permanent spot in my travel makeup case? It plays well with others. My go-to blush and highlighter layered smoothly over it without pilling. Available in 14 shades with cool, warm, and neutral undertone options, I first tried shade 3P, which ended up being too light, especially once my skin picked up some sun. Shade 5N (a light-medium with neutral undertones) was just right. Some reviewers say the formula feels oily at first, and I felt that initially, too. But it quickly absorbed into a matte, weightless finish. I'm not the only fan. Despite this being a newer product, it already has glowing reviews from people with different skin types. One shopper with an 'aging, uneven skin tone' called it 'the most natural skin tint SPF' they've used. Another reviewer with sensitive, combination skin said it gives their 'tan skin just enough color to look polished and pulled together on a low-key day.' $20 at Target $20 at Overall, shoppers love its long-lasting, natural-looking finish. 'Okay, so this is my skin, but better! The fact that this skin tint feels like nothing is the most important thing to me,' one reviewer shared. 'With the added skincare ingredients, it's just chef's kiss.' She even noted her sister planned to buy her own after trying it. At just $20 for a formula that combines skincare, SPF, and foundation, this Versed skin tint is an easy win for your travel toiletry bag. Add it to your cart before your next warm-weather trip—or read on for more top-rated SPF products. Love a great deal? Sign up for our T+L Recommends newsletter and we'll send you our favorite travel products each week.

NBC News

25-05-2025

Health
NBC News

John Wiederspan puts on an AI-powered wearable camera designed to detect medication errors. David Jaewon Oh for NBC News Health news Medical errors are still harming patients. AI could help change that. Medication mistakes — where the wrong drug or the wrong dosage is given to a patient — are among the most common errors in medicine.

May 25, 2025, 5:00 AM EDT By David Cox John Wiederspan is well aware of how things can go wrong in the high-pressure, high-stakes environment of an operating room. 'During situations such as trauma, or a patient doing poorly, there's a real rush to try and get emergency drugs into the patient as fast as possible,' said Wiederspan, a nurse anesthetist at UW Medicine in Seattle. 'And that's when mistakes can occur, when you're flustered, your adrenaline's rushing, you're drawing up drugs and you're trying to push them.' Despite ongoing efforts to improve patient safety, it's estimated that at least 1 in 20 patients still experience medical mistakes in the health care system. One of the most common categories of mistakes is medication errors, where for one reason or another, a patient is given either the wrong dose of a drug or the wrong drug altogether. In the U.S., these errors injure approximately 1.3 million people a year and result in one death each day, according to the World Health Organization. In response, many hospitals have introduced guardrails, ranging from color coding schemes that make it easier to differentiate between similarly named drugs, to barcode scanners that verify that the correct medicine has been given to the correct patient. Despite these attempts, medication mistakes still occur with alarming regularity. 'I had read some studies that said basically 90% of anesthesiologists admit to having a medication error at some point in their career,' said Dr. Kelly Michaelsen, Wiederspan's colleague at UW Medicine and an assistant professor of anesthesiology and pain medicine at the University of Washington. She started to wonder whether emerging technologies could help. As both a medical professional and a trained engineer, it struck her that spotting an error about to be made, and alerting the anesthesiologists in real time, should be within the capabilities of AI. 'I was like, 'This seems like something that shouldn't be too hard for AI to do,'' she said. 'Ninety-nine percent of the medications we use are these same 10-20 drugs, and so my idea was that we could train an AI to recognize them and act as a second set of eyes.' The study Michaelsen focused on vial swap errors, which account for around 20% of all medication mistakes. All injectable drugs come in labeled vials, which are then transferred to a labeled syringe on a medication cart in the operating room. But in some cases, someone selects the wrong vial, or the syringe is labeled incorrectly, and the patient is injected with the wrong drug. In one particularly notorious vial swap error, a 75-year-old woman being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee was injected with a fatal dose of the paralyzing drug vecuronium instead of the sedative Versed, resulting in her death and a subsequent high-profile criminal trial. Michaelsen thought such tragedies could be prevented through 'smart eyewear' — adding an AI-powered wearable camera to the protective eyeglasses worn by all staff during operations. Working with her colleagues in the University of Washington computer science department, she designed a system that can scan the immediate environment for syringe and vial labels, read them and detect whether they match up. 'It zooms in on the label and detects, say, propofol inside the syringe, but ondansetron inside the vial, and so it produces a warning,' she said. 'Or the two labels are the same, so that's all good, move on with your day.' Building the device took Michaelsen and her team more than three years, half of which was spent getting approval to use prerecorded video streams of anesthesiologists correctly preparing medications inside the operating room. Once given the green light, she was able to train the AI on this data, along with additional footage — this time in a lab setting — of mistakes being made. 'There's lots of issues with alarm fatigue in the operating room, so we had to make sure it works very well, it can do a near perfect job of detecting errors, and so [if used for real] it wouldn't be giving false alarms,' she said. 'For obvious ethical reasons, we couldn't be making mistakes on purpose with patients involved, so we did that in a simulated operating room.' In a study published late last year, Michaelsen reported that the device detected vial swap errors with 99.6% accuracy. All that's left is to decide the best way for warning messages to be relayed and it could be ready for real-world use, pending Food and Drug Administration clearance. The study was not funded by AI tech companies. 'I'm leaning towards auditory feedback because a lot of the headsets like GoPro or Google Glasses have built-in microphones,' she said. 'Just a little warning message which makes sure people stop for a second and make sure they're doing what they think they're doing.' Wiederspan has tested the device and said he's optimistic about its potential for improving patient safety, although he described the current GoPro headset as being a little bulky. 'Once it gets a bit smaller, I think you're going to get more buy-in from anesthesia providers to use it,' Wiederspan said. 'But I think it's going to be great. Anything that's going to make our job a little bit easier, spot any potential mistakes and help bring our focus back to the patient is a good thing.' It isn't a fail-safe Patient safety advocates have been calling for the implementation of error-preventing AI tools for some time. Dr. Dan Cole, vice chair of the anesthesiology department at UCLA Health and president of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation, likened their potential for reducing risk to that of self-driving cars and improving road safety. But while Cole is encouraged by the UW study and other AI-based research projects to prevent prescribing and dispensing errors in pharmacies, he said there are still questions surrounding the most effective ways to integrate these technologies into clinical care. 'The UW trial idea was indeed a breakthrough,' he said. 'As with driverless taxis, I'm a bit reluctant to use the technology at this point, but based on the potential for improved safety, I am quite sure I will use it in the future.' Melissa Sheldrick, a patient safety advocate from Ontario who lost her 8-year-old son Andrew to a medication error in 2016, echoed those thoughts. Sheldrick said that while technology can make a difference, the root cause of many medical errors is often a series of contributing factors, from lack of communication to vital data being compartmentalized within separate hospital departments or systems. 'Technology is an important layer in safety, but it's just one layer and cannot be relied upon as a fail-safe,' she said. Others feel that AI can play a key role in preventing mistakes, particularly in demanding environments such as the operating room and emergency room, where creating more checklists and asking for extra vigilance has proved ineffective at stopping errors. 'These interventions either add friction or demand perfect attention from already overburdened providers in a sometimes chaotic reality with numerous distractions and competing priorities,' said Dr. Nicholas Cordella, an assistant professor of medicine at Boston University's Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. 'AI-enabled cameras allow for passive monitoring without adding cognitive burden to clinicians and staff.' AI is only going to be used more AI tools are likely to be deployed to prevent errors in an even broader range of situations. At UW Medicine, Michaelsen is considering expanding her device to also detect the volume of the drug present in a syringe, as a way of preventing underdosing and overdosing errors. 'This is another area where harm can occur, especially in pediatrics, because you've got patients [in the same department] where there can be a hundredfold difference in size, from a brand-new premature baby to an overweight 18-year-old,' she said. 'Sometimes we have to dilute medications, but as you do dilutions there's chances for errors. It isn't happening to every single patient, but we do this enough times a day and to enough people that there is a possibility for people to get injured.' Wiederspan said he can also see AI-powered wearable cameras being used in the emergency room and on the hospital floor to help prevent errors when dispensing oral medications. 'I know Kelly's currently working on using the system with intravenous drugs, but if it can be tailored to oral medications, I think that's going to help too,' Wiederspan said. 'I used to work in a cardiac unit, and sometimes these patients are on a plethora of drugs, a little cup full of all these pills. So maybe the AI can catch errors there as well.' Of course, broader uses of AI throughout a hospital also come with data protection and privacy concerns, especially if the technology happens to be scanning patient faces and screens or documents containing their medical information. In UW Medicine's case, Michaelsen said this is not an issue as the tool is only trained to look for labels on syringes, and does not actively store any data. 'Privacy concerns represent a significant challenge with passive, always-on camera technology,' Cordella said. 'There needs to be clear standards with monitoring for breaches, and the technology should be introduced with full transparency to both patients and health care staff.' He also noted the possibility of more insidious issues such as clinicians starting to excessively rely on AI, reducing their own vigilance and neglecting traditional safety practices. 'There's also a potential slippery slope here,' Cordella said. 'If this technology proves successful for medication error detection, there could be pressure to expand it to monitor other aspects of clinician behavior, raising ethical questions about the boundary between a supportive safety tool and intrusive workplace monitoring.' But while the prospect of AI entering hospitals on a wider basis certainly presents the need for stringent oversight, many who work in the operating room feel it has enormous potential to do good by keeping patients safe and buying medical professionals valuable time in critical situations. 'Time is of the essence in an emergency situation where you're trying to give blood, lifesaving medications, checking vital signs, and you're trying to rush through these processes,' Wiederspan said. 'I think that's where this kind of wearable technology can really come into play, helping us shave off vital seconds and create more time where we can really focus on the patient.' David Cox David Cox is a freelance journalist focusing on all aspects of health, from fitness and nutrition to infectious diseases and future medicines. Prior to becoming a full-time journalist, he was a neuroscientist attempting to understand how and why the brain goes wrong.

These Are The Merit Beauty Products Actually Worth Buying

Buzz Feed

06-05-2025

Lifestyle
Buzz Feed

These Are The Merit Beauty Products Actually Worth Buying

The abundance of startup beauty brands can prompt eye rolls among even the most diehard makeup and skincare devotees. The market has been flooded with seemingly near-identical emerging brands, making it hard to know what's worth the investment and which are just really good at social media marketing. I've long been skeptical of many of these newcomers, and admit to even feeling overwhelmed by the range of choices that are available. I am, however, always looking for simple makeup solutions that help to keep my routine pared down without sacrificing on quality. So when I first heard about Merit Beauty, my interest was instantly piqued. I was further intrigued when I found out that the brand is helmed by Katherine Power, who previously founded the skin care line Versed, the wine startup Avaline and Who What Wear, a fashion and lifestyle website and clothing brand. She's highly regarded as a person with trustworthy judgment in the style and beauty realm and has impeccable taste. She consistently works with people who are at the top of their field, like celeb esthetician Biba de Sousa, further bolstering the brand's credibility. Merit is branded as a minimalist's beauty line, providing shoppers with everything they need and nothing they don't. It started out with only 10 products in its lineup — presumably everything you need for a gorgeous, glowing face in just five minutes — but has now expanded to include more skin care and makeup offerings. After trying out pretty much all of Merit's products, I can officially say that I'm hooked. I use them daily and love how quickly and easily they give my skin a natural, flawless glow. The line gives you an effortlessly put-together appearance without feeling caked on, overly formal or greasy. Best of all, the reasonable price point makes it easy to stock up on my favorites, like the lip tint or cheek balm. All of the products are formulated to be skin-forward, and are full of plant-based ingredients like antioxidants, squalane and vitamin B5. I was especially excited to try them out because they've also been designed to be safe for acne-prone, sensitive and reactive skin like mine. So not only are you getting lovely coverage from the makeup itself, but you're nourishing the overall health of your skin as well. All of their products are vegan, cruelty-free and Leaping Bunny-certified as well as EU compliant and designated Clean at Sephora. Merit says it is also committed to eliminating as much virgin plastic as possible from its lineup of products and uses shipment packaging that is recyclable, reusable or biodegradable. As a sweet touch, every first order ships with a chic corduroy makeup bag. I love to use mine as a handbag, and my partner is constantly swiping it for herself. Below, I've rounded out my eight must-have products from Merit's lineup. Buy them individually or save by bundling Merit's bestselling products and getting everything you need in one go. You'll be surprised at how much easier and quicker they'll make your morning routine. 1. Merit Beauty Solo Shadow Merit When I first saw that Merit had debuted a new line of eyeshadows, I could not have been more excited — first by the gorgeous color options and then by the texture and finish. You can get them in eight colors, four of which are classic neutrals and four of which are fun statement hues. They have a unique cream-to-powder formula that glides on easily and blends beautifully but then dries down to a soft, powdery matte finish. I currently have three in my rotation and would happily add more. 2. Merit Beauty Great Skin Duo Get that post-facial glow every day with this skin-loving duo from Merit. The Great Skin Duo includes a serum and a moisturizer that work in tandem to quench even the thirstiest skin, leaving it glowing, supple and smooth. The serum has a super-light formulation that won't pill under makeup and keeps skin looking fresh and hydrated all day long, while the moisturizer can help support skin's moisture barrier, elasticity and tone. It's an easy way for her to pamper yourself daily, and who doesn't want that? 3. Merit Beauty Retrospect L'Extrait de Parfum Merit Beauty If you're in the market for a new fragrance this spring and summer, then Merit has you covered. Its new perfume is as elegant and fresh as you would imagine from such a sophisticated brand. It features a lush, soft and clean scent with floral, musk, vanilla and moss notes that will leave you smelling like yourself but better. Instead of overpowering, it'll complement your skin and evolve as the day goes on. 4. Merit Beauty Merit's foundation stick is, in my opinion, the crown jewel of the collection. It glides on effortlessly, has a creamy consistency and gives you just the right amount of buildable coverage. It's incredibly versatile, too. Some days I use it just as an under-eye concealer or to spot correct around my nose or to hide pimples, and when I want fuller coverage I use it as an all-over foundation. It leaves skin looking glowy, but not oily, has a dewy finish and, unlike many hydrating foundations, it actually lasts all day long. It's available in 30 different shades, is safe for acne-prone skin like mine, conditions and moisturizes the skin and can even be used as a contour — just go three shades darker than your usual hue if that's how you plan to use it. 5. Merit Beauty After years of using Glossier's brow pomade, I've switched allegiances for good. Merit's brow pomade comes in four hues that add color and structure to even the wimpiest of brows (like mine). They make brows fluffy and full, but never stiff or dry. The tube lasts longer than most other brow pomades I've tried and gives brows a very natural, yet robust, appearance. I never walk out the door without swiping it on first. 6. Merit Beauty Flush Balm Merit Beauty I'm a big blush person, so my standards are very high in general, but particularly for tint or balm-type formulas. I have extremely acne-prone skin, so creamy formulas can be quite dicey. But I'm pleased to report that Merit's blush balm is a great option for anyone looking for that natural, lit-from-within glowy vibe that won't clog pores. It is buildable, so you can keep it sheer or layer it on depending on your whim, and it hydrates and conditions the skin and looks good doing it. It has a lovely texture that isn't sticky or smudgy and lasts all day long. It's easy to blend with fingers or a brush and is available in 12 sweet shades. I use it nearly daily. 7. Merit Beauty Shade Slick tinted lip oil Merit Beauty Available in 11 different sheer shades, this tinted lip oil is perfect for anyone who wants a lighter texture than a traditional lipstick. It gives you the same high-shine finish as a gloss but never feels sticky. It adds a hint of color to enhance your overall complexion, is buildable if you want a bit more drama and feels lightweight. It's made with hydrating ingredients that nourish and strengthen the moisture barrier of your lips, so it's good for you too. I love the Sangria and Pink Beet shades, but my partner lives in the Cara Cara and Au Naturel hues. It's almost impossible to pick just one. 8. Merit Beauty Clean Lash lengthening mascara Merit Beauty If you love a natural lash, this is about to become your go-to mascara. Despite a lifetime of being obsessed with thick — dare we say clumpy — mascaras, I'm absolutely besotted with Merit's lovely version. It's the ideal everyday lash-enhancer: clean, natural and slick. It looks like your own lashes, but infinitely better. The brush gives a really nice fluttery, feathery effect and the formula itself gives lashes a really shiny, wet look that won't smudge or look dried out even as the day wears on. Best of all, it's easy to remove at the end of the day, so you don't have to worry about going to town on your lashes when cleansing your face. Price: $26

Latest news with #Versed

Versed enters specialty retail with launch at Ulta Beauty

Versed enters specialty retail with launch at Ulta Beauty

I Wore This Tinted Sunscreen in Place of Foundation Every Day on My Turks and Caicos Vacation—and It's Only $20

These Are The Merit Beauty Products Actually Worth Buying

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