TECHNOLOGY
Meeting demand for extra capacity
As the NHS faces an unprecedented backlog of surgeries and endoscopies, decontamination departments will face significant pressures to increase capacity. Could technology and automation help these units meet the demand for increased efficiencies? Louise Frampton reports.
Tackling the backlog of surgery and diagnos- tics will require efficient systems, not just in theatres and endoscopy suites, but also in decontamination departments. According to Tim Bryant, Getinge’s director of commercial strategy, UK & Ireland, many Trusts are now having conversations on how they can deliv- er the expected increase in capacity. He be- lieves that investment in facilities, intelligent data and automation will have a vital role in tackling the problem, but supplier partner- ships could also help provide the expertise required to manage the challenges ahead.
“In the wake of the pandemic, there is
a perfect storm of a growing backlog, very tired staff and constrained infrastructure and capacity. Because of the infection control procedures required, diagnostic suites have gone from performing 10-12 endoscopies, in a morning, to two or three. “Prior to the pandemic there was a renewed focus on getting waiting lists down and they were working extremely hard to achieve this. Despite waiting list initiatives and weekend working, these lists have now increased due to the necessity to keep
patients and staff safe during the pandemic. It is very frustrating for staff who have all worked so hard,” commented Tim.
While building extra capacity through investment in new facilities and equipment may provide some of the answers, Trusts will also need to improve efficiency of their processes.
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Supporting investment To help address the issue, Getinge has been talking to Trusts on how they can provide additional facilities to deliver extra capacity – from a basic AER reprocessing room, to state-of-the-art endoscopy suites. These modular solutions can cover the reprocessing capability, as well as providing additional clinical space to perform procedures. “Being a large MedTech company, we understand the financial challenges that most NHS Trusts find themselves in – with growing demand in terms of a backlog of patients (both in elective surgery and diagnostics), while facing constrained capital budgets. Lots of equipment and infrastructure needs replacing, but there is a limited amount of money to invest. This leads to many NHS Trusts having to make difficult decisions. “We speak to Trusts to understand their individual geographical challenges, recognising that one size does not fit all. It is about building a solution that is bespoke to their needs, that can be delivered quickly and effectively, which can also be paid for over a period of time. They don’t have to find the capital budget up front but can still access the latest technology and equipment so they can work more efficiently,” commented Tim. Tim went on to discuss the space constraints imposed by working in COVID- safe environments. He believes there will be a variety of approaches to managing the challenges in the coming months – as well as creating additional safe capacity on existing hospital sites, some Trusts may opt to outsource reprocessing workloads to super centres and private hospitals, such as Nuffield or Spire.
APRIL 2021
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