COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS
Ventilator alerts delivered through nurse call system
John Evans, Sales manager, East Anglia, at designer, developer, and manufacturer of nurse call systems, Wandsworth Healthcare, explains how the company delivered a reliable alarm system for the Burstead Ward for colorectal, vascular, and urology surgery at Basildon University Hospital in Essex that would instantly alert hospital staff to ventilator failure, removal, or misuse, to effectively safeguard patients.
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to put hospitals, healthcare staff, and medical resources under extreme duress. With staff and critical resources so thinly spread across healthcare facilities, and intensive care wards full to capacity with patients, the healthcare sector is faced with several unique and daunting challenges. According to NHS hospital activity data, an estimated 292 patients known to have COVID-19 from the previous 24 hours were admitted to hospitals in London on 5 February 2021, including patients diagnosed in the previous 24 hours – with 262 of these admissions in London first- time cases of COVID-19, indicating that at the time, the spread of the virus and subsequent strain on the UK’s healthcare staff were showing little signs of slowing.
Beyond usual capacity One of the most significant challenges that we’ve seen is the fact that nurses and healthcare staff are having to provide care beyond their usual capacity. Intensive care nurses have been attending to several patients at once as a result of the virus, where usually individual staff members would be assigned to just one patient. Additionally, the pandemic and the resulting pressure on the NHS have resulted in a surge of staff absences, indicating that added pressure will be on the remaining medical staff to deliver their essential care with a reduced workforce. Data from 6 January 2021 shows that on that date there were 14,441 staff absences through sickness or self-isolation in London hospitals, a 6,454 increase in absences compared with 6 December 2020. The same dataset also highlighted that
1,026 mechanical ventilation beds were occupied on 5 February 2021 in London,
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Basildon University Hospital in Essex – where Wandsworth Healthcare was called upon last year to integrate a reliable ventilator alarm solution into the existing IPiN Evolution nurse call system.
a significant rise from the 866 occupied beds the previous month. This increased demand has placed further stress on both essential hospital equipment such as ventilators, and the hospital staff having to manage beyond their usual expectations.
Hospital ventilators Hospital ventilators have played, and continue to play, a fundamental role in protecting human lives during the current public health crisis, and must therefore be monitored closely at all times by nurses. Healthcare staff need to be notified
The hospital has trusted Wandsworth Healthcare’s nurse call solutions since 1970, and has utilised the robust, cost-effective IPiN Evolution nurse call system for the past decade
50 Health Estate Journal February 2022
as soon as possible about damage to ventilator systems or potential errors to safeguard patients and prevent loss of life.
Adaptable technology when it matters most The current and recent COVID-19 landscape has made the individual supervision of ventilation systems an ever-growing challenge, due to the issue of insufficient staff. Clinical and Estates teams must therefore turn to foolproof solutions to make a positive difference and maximise operational efficiency. Through the installation of fast-acting, simple-to-use technology, issues of ventilator safety can be immediately addressed and resolved, to the benefit of the wider healthcare sector. As part of a long-standing
relationship with Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Wandsworth Healthcare was called upon last year
©Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust
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