Design in Mental Health 2015 Show Preview
Transom door closer set for launch
Safehinge will launch a new door closer for mental health and dementia care environments, SUREclose Freeswing – an ‘evolution’ of its award-winning Symphony door system. The company said:
“Research suggests fire safety is often compromised when door closers are eliminated, due to the conflict between anti- barricade and anti-ligature needs versus a failsafe means of fire protection. “In response we have
developed SUREclose Freeswing – a transom door closer that is linked to the fire alarm, and operates day-to-day with no closing force. This makes it easy to use for service-users with reduced strength, and allows better observation
for clinical purposes. When the fire alarm triggers, the door closes automatically, negating the need for staff to manually close doors in a panic situation. SUREclose includes backcheck, and has no accessible connecting arms.” SUREclose Freeswing
is currently being adopted by organisations including NHS Tayside, Pennine Care NHS Trust, and Bupa.
Safehinge will be also unveil a new ‘completely
redesigned’ anti-barricade door stop, SWIFTstop, which allows rapid access and ‘eliminates the risk of force applied to the inside of the door impeding access’.
Protecting staff and patients
Guardian Staff Safety Systems manufactures call alarms and staff attack systems for service-users and staff that exceed NHS and Home Office requirements, and are widely used by NHS Trusts and private healthcare providers UK-wide. Applications include mental health units,
hospitals, care homes, custody centres, primary care centres, surgeries, and many more sites requiring staff protection. The company’s development programme
has been driven ‘by a combination of the continuing advances in technology and customers’ needs’. It said: “Many of the features which a Guardian system provides were incorporated in response to requests
State Hospital specifies
‘pop-up TV unit’ A family-run contract furniture business established for over 60 years, which specialises in supplying furniture into ‘challenging’ and mental health installations, Solk operates from its own three-acre site in Leeds. Its large range of lounge, dining, and
bedroom furniture has been designed ‘to create a contemporary setting, while being able to stand the demands of a contract environment’. The company is a preferred supplier to the
NHS, local authorities, and private healthcare groups. It is accredited to the BS EN ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System, and can offer a CAD layout service and online quotations. One of the company’s innovative products for the mental healthcare sector is the ‘pop-up
TV unit’ pictured. The company said: “This system has proven very successful in a number of schemes, including at The State Hospital in Carstairs, where staff have specified a unit for each lounge area.”
from clients seeking solutions to particular issues – the Design in Mental Health Network being a good example. A number of these features will form part of our exhibition display.” Pictured is a ‘ligature-proof, mushroom
push button’ with integral reassurance LED, said to be ‘perfect for users with disabilities or arthritic conditions because the user can use any part of their limb to push the button’. Available in a variety of colours, it is ‘ideal
for dementia patients, who prefer specific coloured pushes’.
Tackling safety and
communication Call Systems Technology (CST) claims to be the UK’s market-leader in wireless on-site communications and alarm systems. Among technologies offered by the company
are DECT phones, which ‘encompass communication and security with all the functions of a pager, high-clarity phone, lone worker protection device, and alarm, in one stylish, slim handset’. CST added: “DECT’s clear coloured graphics provide a quick and easy view of any situation. Alerts are grouped by colour in the display. With accurate location positioning and an integrated ‘Man Down’ alarm, staff working alone or in high risk environments are better protected.” CST can also supply the BlueBell system
– a compact personal alarm and response pager, with a ‘unique’ beacon location tracker. One user, The Milestones Trust, which supports people with learning disabilities, mental health needs, and dementia, in the Bristol area, said: “The BlueBell System has helped us hugely. We can now be assured that if any of our 35 staff need to set off their BlueBell staff attack pager, we will know their whereabouts even if they move from room to room, thanks to the beacon technology.”
THE NETWORK April 2015 15
Hexagonal chair
for six environments Award-winning healthcare solutions provider, Teal, has unveiled a new ‘innovative multi-use chair’ created by international designer, Ben Grafton, which it will shown at the DIMH 2015 exhibition. ‘Roku’ is a durable, rotationally moulded
chair and matching table collection with contemporary styling, available in a vibrant colour palette. Moulded polyethylene provides excellent impact strength and durability. ‘Roku’, Japanese for ‘six’, refers to the chair’s
feature set, from the six-sided hexagonal shape, to the six applicable environments – bedroom, lounge, reception, dining, outdoor, or high security. Roku can be configured to be lightweight, or weighted to limit misuse. London-based designer Ben Grafton said:
“The challenge was to create a stylish, durable seating range, with a pleasing aesthetic, which protects both patients and carers. The six-sided flowing design makes it difficult to pick up. There are no protruding corners, or areas for concealment, while the chair incorporates anti-ligature features, and weighting options are available.”
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