SPONSORED BY HEALTH SECTOR NEWS Changes to training intake at Eastwood Park


Training centre, Eastwood Park, says that, ‘following a tumultuous few months’, it can now confirm the following changes to the next intake as a result of the latest Government changes regarding the cap on student numbers being lifted, and is ‘looking forward to welcoming degree students back soon’. The planned October 2020 intake for new applicants will now take place in April 2021. The cycle of intakes at Eastwood Park will then resume on an annual basis again from October 2021. In addition, all applications now have to be made through UCAS, not directly to Eastwood Park – to help universities manage their student and potential student numbers.


The degree team will then receive all


applications directly from UCAS, and it will still be the course-leaders who make the decision on accepting an applicant. Current degree students, whose studies were paused during the height of the pandemic, will re-start their degrees in September 2020 – with the degree study weekends running as planned – and


then complete their studies in February 2021, with an opportunity to continue on to the next level – either year 2 of a Foundation Degree, or onto the BSc – in the new academic year, in April 2021. Eastwood Park said: “After a challenging year, we are looking forward to welcoming current students back for the autumn study weekend.” New students looking to join the April 2021 intake will be able to choose from: n A Foundation degree in hospital engineering.


n A Foundation degree in medical equipment technologies (starting October 2021).


n A BSc (Hons) in management of healthcare engineering technologies and facilities.


Legiolert’s UK SCA acceptance for L. pneumophila testing


IDEXX’s Legiolert culture testing method for Legionella pneumophila has been accepted by the UK’s Standing Committee of Analysts (SCA). Legiolert, for accurate analysis of samples from cooling towers, hot and cold water systems, spa pools, and other water sources, is now specified as a recommended method in the Committee’s ‘blue book’ publication, The determination of Legionella bacteria in waters and other environmental samples (2020) – Part 2 – Culture Methods for their detection and enumeration.


Legiolert was launched in Europe in


2017, and is described as ‘a highly sensitive method for the confirmed detection of L. pneumophila in water, delivering results up to seven days faster than traditional culture testing methods’. L. pneumophila is the most common Legionella species in water, and, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control clinical culture data, causes 97% of all cases of Legionnaires’ disease.


IDEXX said: “A number of peer- reviewed studies have highlighted the superior performance of Legiolert when compared with the standard method for


detection of L. pneumophila. The ISO method has a number of limitations, including a significant false negative error rate, which can result in undetected contamination and consequent risk to human health. In contrast, Legiolert is a culture method which is both accurate and easy to use.” Legiolert is recognised with AFNOR certification for hot and cold sanitary water and cooling tower water (Reference No IDX 33/06 06/19). The Legiolert test uses bacterial enzyme detection technology that signals the presence of L. pneumophila through utilisation of the Legiolert reagent.


Manufacturers urged to digitise product data to reduce risk


A new initiative aims to get manufacturers in the construction industry to take ownership of their product information, with a series of articles being produced, and manufacturers being encouraged to join a discussion group to share their views. Supported by the Institution of Engineering and Technology, Construction Products Europe (an international non-profit making association of national and European associations representing small and medium-size enterprises that aims to promote the European construction industry), and the UK BIM Alliance, the project is producing a Plain Language Guide for manufacturers, ‘setting out why digital product data is important, and how


18 Health Estate Journal October 2020


manufacturers can benefit by taking simple, low-cost steps’.


“Structured product data has many benefits”, said Paul Surin of IBM, a member of the project editorial team. “By structuring data and taking advantage of the new standards, manufacturers can start treating their information as an asset, monetise their data, save considerably on marketing costs, and reduce risk.” Patricia Massey of Electrium explained. “The Grenfell tragedy has shown our


industry that knowing where your products are is essential to public safety, but it also protects manufacturers. The new Building Safety Bill requires building owners to certify that their buildings are safe, and that requires knowing what is in them. Manufacturers will need to conform to the market need for standardised, traceable product information soon, if only to protect their business interests.”


Paul Surin. Patricia Massey. Blane Judd.


Blane Judd, chair of the IET Built Environment Panel, added: “One of the goals of the IET’s Built Environment Panel is to support the digitalisation of the built environment sector. This still has a long way to go, and a better understanding and management of product data will make a significant contribution to this journey.”


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