REFURBISHMENT
Lists unaffected during St George’s EDU upgrade
Senior compliance projects manager at St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in south London, Sandy Sayandan, had already identified potential improvements to the endoscope decontamination unit at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, but when the Trust’s Authorising Engineer for decontamination (AE(D)), and a Joint Advisory Group on Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (JAG) report, highlighted issues to be corrected, he suggested that ‘instead of working to HTM 01-06’, the Trust should aim for best practice. HEJ reports.
“The director agreed with me and the plans to take the scheme forward,” explained Sandy Sayandan. “I knew what was required, and some of the teams that might be able to handle the project.” The comprehensive scheme required new floors, walls and ceilings, lighting, interlocking doors, improved air-handling and pressure differentials, changes to the water supply and drainage, new sinks, and more. All this had to be achieved without affecting the operation of the department. “To ensure that the department could continue reprocessing scopes, we needed the work to be done on weekends,” explained Sandy Sayandan. “We looked at how we could implement the plan with the scope of work. I chose Garth Rowbottom and SSD because of Garth’s flexibility and the quality of the company’s work. We agreed a programme of work to achieve best practice at the hospital. “Vicki Hedley, Lead nurse for endoscopy services, was fully committed to implementing the improvements, but was hesitant that the work could be carried out without affecting the daily operation of the decontamination area. Garth Rowbottom and I had worked together previously, and we knew it was a realistic programme that could be achieved. Vicki Hedley met Garth, and was happy and comfortable that we could go ahead as planned. The Infection Prevention and Control team and Estates directorate also committed to get the job done.” The scheme was due to start in January 2020, but had to be delayed for various reasons; then COVID-19 hit. “It was a challenging time,” explained Sandy Sayandan. “Health and safety were our top priority. We had to undertake risk assessments, and only issued Permits to Work for the different tasks involved when we were sure that it was safe to do so.
Starting work early
“Although there were not as many patients throughout the pandemic, the EDU (endoscope decontamination unit)
Vicki Hedley, Lead nurse for Endoscopy services, and Sandy Sayandan, senior compliance projects manager, in the recently refurbished endoscope decontamination unit at St George’s Hospital, Tooting.
was still working five days a week. So, Garth Rowbottom and his team began work at five or six o’clock every Friday, working through until the Monday morning, handing back the area clean and fully operational each time. Garth was always there for the handover to ensure that everything was OK.” The EDU is located above a recently refurbished ward area, with some of the department’s pipework in the ward’s ceiling void. “It was a big challenge to isolate the pipework,” explained Sandy Sayandan. “We had to ensure that the ward could continue to operate. Garth froze the valve, which enabled the team to go ahead with the work. “There were drains to each sink. I wanted these to be removed to have one point of entry. Garth modified the drains and the pipework so that we had one point of entry to take all the water away. The area is now easier to isolate. We can pressure test it too. We had had issues with the hospital’s pipework previously, with some manufacturers’ fittings failing. I recommended Viega press fittings for
the scheme. Garth is an approved Viega installer. He installed the fittings and undertook the pressure and mechanical commissioning tests.
“We changed four sinks and the storage cabinets. The original cabinets were wooden and were chipping. While the old sinks were height-adjustable, this facility had stopped working on two sinks. They were replaced with Neocare high quality, height-adjustable sinks and stainless steel storage cabinets. I’ve used Neocare a number of times; its products are very good, well-built, robust, and have a superb finish.
Taking down the ceilings
“We had to take down the ceilings in both the dirty and clean areas and create new ceilings,” he added. “The floors in both areas were also replaced. These were curved up the side of the walls, and the walls were clad in Altro Whiterock. We improved the lighting by installing Thorlux LEDs. We have these in most areas of the hospital. They’re daylight and energy-saving.”
July 2021 Health Estate Journal 45
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