NEWS
Barnsley hospital adopts blood clot
prevention device during pregnancy Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is the first maternity unit in the UK to use an innovative electrostimulation device, the geko, to reduce the risk of blood clots in high-risk patients during pregnancy. Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) represents the biggest cause of maternal death in the UK, with patients more likely to develop a blood clot during pregnancy and after delivery than at any other point in their lives. The current standard of care for blood clot prevention during pregnancy are blood thinning drugs (anticoagulants), mechanical pneumatic compressive devices (IPC) or elastic stockings. However, some patients are unable to be prescribed these prophylaxis methods for a variety of reasons, including severe pre-eclampsia, where patients might need urgent delivery, or post-partum haemorrhage – leaving them without a method of blood clot prevention, presenting an unmet clinical need. To address this, Barnsley Hospital
the geko, could be suitable for blood clot prevention in high-risk pregnant patients for whom the current standard of care is not suitable.
The device is a small watch-sized device that sticks to the leg and increases blood flow, via painless electrical pulses, at a rate equal to 60% of walking without a patient having to move.
NHS Foundation Trust carried out a pilot observational study to determine whether a neuromuscular electrostimulation device,
Loewenstein 4ChAdAug19_Hres.qxp_Loewenstein 2ChAdAug19_Hres 07/06/2019 09:59 Page 1
The study focused on 90 patients who could not be prescribed anticoagulants or mechanical compressive devices, this represented 2% of the overall patient population. All 90 patients required the device during some stage of labour, and more than half were prescribed the device as the only method of blood clot prevention. The study found that the device was safe and well tolerated by all 90 patients, giving this high-risk group a method of protection where other mechanical interventions and anticoagulants are unsuitable. Following this, the hospital has now adopted the device into its obstetrics pathway and it will be available for all high-risk pregnant patients who are unable to be prescribed alternative methods of venous thromboembolism (VTE) prevention. Dr. Mona Fawzy, consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology, labour ward lead and deputy obstetric lead at Barnsley Hospital, said: “Patients are at greater risk of developing a blood clot during pregnancy and after delivery, than when not pregnant, so it is essential to assess high-risk patients regularly regarding their risk of developing a blood clot to protect and keep them safe. Currently, there is a small but significant group of patients who are left without an appropriate blood clot prevention method, putting them at greater risk. Our findings show the device is safe and well-tolerated and can be used to protect patients until it is safe to prescribe blood thinning drugs.”
THE ELISA FAMILY The future of intensive care ventilation
£7.5 million to roll
out e-rostering NHS hospitals, clinics and pharmacies across 38 more Trusts will be able to save staff time and money by rolling out e-rostering systems, with £7.5 million government funding. During the pandemic, e-rostering has proven instrumental when redeploying staff, reporting absences and managing working hours and pay information, notably for vaccination centres. NHS Trusts have reported an increased appetite across clinicians to implement e-rostering as a result.
E-rostering allows clinicians to select
shifts digitally, providing them with more flexibility and more efficient work schedules. Specific skillsets can more easily be matched to the right shifts when redeploying staff using digital staff passports. The passports are currently being piloted and can save staff and HR teams time by providing a verified record of identity, employment and training on their smartphone. These have been used during the COVID-19 response to redeploy staff quickly to support areas in need.
A 2018 study showed one of the functions of e-rostering – caseload scheduling – could save each NHS clinician 34 minutes a week, which can add up to hundreds of hours per Trust. By planning routes between healthcare settings or to patients’ homes for home visits, clinical resource can be geographically matched so NHS staff can spend less time travelling and more time with patients. Managing shifts more effectively makes it easier to work flexibly, giving a better work/life balance, while the technology can also cut costs for the NHS by reducing the reliance on staffing agencies.
Elisa 800 with Integrated EIT
Löwenstein Medical UK Ltd, 1 E-Centre, Easthampstead Road, Bracknell RG12 1NF t: 01344 830023 e:
info@loewensteinmedical.co.uk w:
loewensteinmedical.co.uk
FEBRUARY 2021
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