DECONTAMINATION
to ensure reprocessing could be completed in good time, maintaining efficiencies and providing a smooth continuation of service for patients. An onsite solution also, importantly, would enable Glenfield General to train staff with new equipment and develop team skillsets, while negating potential risks posed by sending scopes to an offsite service provider. Taking these factors into consideration, it was clear that a tailored mobile medical unit presented the most flexible solution to each of UHL’s key requirements and, following the success of its Quest+ launch a year prior, EMS Healthcare represented the ideal partner to develop a new unit with.
Working together
Collaboration was key throughout the design and development process and continues to support the unit’s evolution. Working closely alongside the hospital’s decontamination and estates team, EMS Healthcare commenced a reconfiguration of an existing unit, Quad, previously used as a renal dialysis suite. Jo Quarterman, commercial manager, recalled: “Providing a new unit on time and to spec is of paramount importance when working with innovative NHS Trusts, and so it was really beneficial to collaborate directly with the UHL team, as it allowed us to build a unit that accommodated their requirements in a matter of months.” When commencing a project of this scale, EMS Healthcare always emphasises the importance of engaging all of a Trust’s key stakeholders. The consideration of a wider pool of expertise, from conversations with health and safety to infection control and end users, is a vital way to scope out and troubleshoot issues before a unit arrives onsite. Quarterman continued: “I always make a point of encouraging Trusts to take a holistic approach when considering a mobile medical unit, and for endoscopy in particular it is vital you engage with your Authorising Engineer for Decontamination and microbiologists, to agree water testing protocols early on. “Engaging every stakeholder was also a priority for UHL, which was not only beneficial for their teams, but also invaluable for guiding our advice on everything from equipment to unit installation. Every aspect was considered, and it worked well, resulting in a unit that was delivered to spec and on time.”
At design and development stage, a range
EMS Healthcare, Quad – Leicester
of factors need to be considered – not least the technical requirements for endoscope reprocessing. EMS Healthcare returned to existing relationships with Cantel (UK) Limited and Veolia to ensure the Quad unit was a complete fit for the Trust’s needs. Quarterman added: “We’d established a good working relationship with Cantel UK and Veolia working on Quest+, and in a multifaceted market such as endoscopy, it’s vital you work with the right partners. We’re able to make a real difference with a joined-up approach.”
An innovative solution to meet demand
Designed in accordance with JAG guidelines and comprised of four trailers, the Quad Mobile Decontamination unit includes eight RapidAER Endoscope Reprocessors, double that of Quest+. The unit also includes an OSRIS duplex RO system with its own external container and additional staff facilities.
Quad also includes a Surestore Storage
System, Transcope Lockable Carts, two double bowl endoscopy grade height adjustable sinks, integral RO plant, a track and trace system and the option to have an EDC Endoscope Drying Cabinet. The unit comes with a Gold Service Contract from Cantel UK to ensure the
UHL prioritised keeping services onsite to ensure reprocessing could be completed in good time, maintaining efficiencies and providing a smooth continuation of service for patients.
AUGUST 2020
ongoing performance of the Cantel equipment and is built in accordance with Health Technical Memoranda (HTM) guidelines.
Meeting accreditation was a key requirement for UHL, with Claire Jones- Manning, Trust decontamination lead, noting that Quad has helped the Trust maintain its JAG accreditation for Glenfield General’s endoscopy reprocessing services.
Proactivity is key
UHL were especially proactive in identifying a future potential gap in their service delivery and planning in accordance. It enabled the team to scope out a unit that identified its key requirements to ensure they never compromised on patient care. It has also enabled the Trust to provide Glenfield General with expanded reprocessing capacity at a time when demand is increasing, in no small part as a result of the National Screening Committee recommending in 2018 that bowel cancer screenings should begin ten years early at age 50. Today, Quad is providing UHL with a reliable, smooth continuation of services, to the ultimate benefit of Glenfield General’s patients. At its core, the project has been a result of a proactive, collaborative approach that has pushed the mobile endoscopy market forward with a pioneering new solution. Trusts can emulate this proactive approach when faced with future changes to service demand.
CSJ
* Based on a flexible sigmoidoscopy procedure, the Trust gets paid £304 per procedure and the total scopes is 17,682. Therefore, the total amount of revenue safeguarded, due to the units maintaining their reprocessing capacity, is over £5million.
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