HEALTHCARE HYGIENE
The rise of technology in healthcare
Virtual wards, remote monitoring, robot-assisted surgery – all recent technological breakthroughs in UK hospitals. Liam Mynes, from Tork manufacturer Essity, looks at the ways in which digital solutions can help improve patient outcomes – and considers how they can be used to enhance cleaning and hygiene.
In June last year, London’s Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital became the UK’s first Trust to adopt Hugo, a robotic- assisted surgery system created by healthcare tech company Medtronic.
Hugo allows surgeons to remotely carry out prostate surgery and a range of other medical procedures. A tiny camera and surgical instruments are inserted into the patient’s body while the surgeon sits at a console. He or she then controls the robot’s arms and instruments via a high- definition 3D display. These types of procedures are said to result in fewer complications and smaller scars.
By September 2023, Guy’s and St Thomas’ had racked up 10,000 robotic-assisted operations. In the meantime, other hospitals began bringing in similar systems.
Robots are now being used for all colorectal procedures at Colchester Hospital, for example, resulting in shorter hospital stays, smaller incisions and improved outcomes. A specialist weight loss clinic at the Luton and Dunstable Hospital is using a robot to carry out bariatric surgeries in a bid to improve efficiency and cut waiting lists.
These are just of a few of the most recent breakthroughs in healthcare technology. Others include virtual wards which are now springing up all over the UK, allowing patients to receive hospital-grade care in their own homes. Patients are remotely monitored by a team of medics who keep tabs on them with
32 | TOMORROW'S CLEANING the aid of apps, wearables and other medical devices.
Artificial intelligence is also increasingly being used in healthcare to analyse X-rays, MRIs and CT scans. These systems use machine-learning algorithms that are said to offer a level of accuracy that can rival – or even surpass – that of humans.
In December last year it was announced that a deal had been signed at the Masovian Regional Hospital in Siedlce, Poland, to build a cleanroom where 3D bioprinted bone implants will be made. Most of the 3D bioprinted implants will be earmarked for Ukraine’s war victims.
As medical procedures become increasingly digitalised, hospital cleaning is also going high-tech with robot cleaning machines being deployed in hospitals countrywide. For example, a robot recently joined the Royal Surrey NHS Trust team and quickly gained positive feedback from patients and staff. The machine has been found to improve cleaning quality and consistency while also allowing humans to concentrate on critical areas for infection transmission such as handrails, door handles, lifts and doors to wards.
Stoke Mandeville Hospital has also brought in a floor cleaning robot, a humanoid machine named Chloe. This has proven to be particularly popular in children’s wards on account of its expressive ‘eyes’ and amusing banter.
twitter.com/TomoCleaning
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