- Six NHS hospitals have invested in an innovative solution, the Clinell Rediroom, to prepare for a second wave of COVID-19 patients
- The compact wheeled cart can be installed in less than five minutes to provide an isolation unit to instantly isolate an infectious patient
Hospitals across the UK are using a new innovation to provide isolation beds for patients with infections including COVID-19.
Since 2010 there has been a 12% drop in UK hospital – from 144,455 to 127,225 – while the number of patients treated has increased significantly.
And, in 2016, the Department of Health and Social Care recommended higher proportions of single-room accommodation – a target of 50%.
But, since COVID-19, the need to isolate infectious patients is more urgent than ever before.
And the current crisis requires a drastic shift in hospital infrastructure.
To address this need, six pioneering UK hospitals have adopted the Clinell Rediroom.
Resembling a small plastic cart when not in use; the pop-up temporary isolation room can quickly and safely stop transmission of contact and droplet pathogens.
It is vital that hospitals utilise isolation rooms and, in cases where these are limited, patient isolation units such as Clinell Rediroom to restrict the aerosol transmission of the virus
It provides a cost-effective alternative to building expensive isolation units and can be swiftly set up in any healthcare setting, even in multi-occupancy bays.
Combining a high-efficiency particulate air filter (HEPA) with a carbon filter, it filters the infectious air.
Studies have shown that installing temporary isolation units in paediatric ICU improved the availability of single rooms for isolation, reducing the number of missed isolation days by 44% and thus reducing the risk of transmission of infections.
Provided by GAMA Healthcare in the UK, Clinell Rediroom was the brainchild of an Australian ER nurse who was concerned about keeping infectious patients on the ward until a private room was available.
Professor Val Edwards-Jones said: “COVID-19 is a highly-contagious virus which can spread through direct droplet and human-to-human transmission; and indirect contact such as through contaminated surfaces.
“Human-to-human transmission, which accounts for up to 85% of COVID-19 cases, occurs mainly through droplets, when a patient sneezes, coughs, or talks, for instance.
“The virus remains in the air as contagious droplets for up to three hours. For this reason, it is vital that hospitals utilise isolation rooms and, in cases where these are limited, patient isolation units such as Clinell Rediroom to restrict the aerosol transmission of the virus.”
“Rediroom provides a unique solution to the UK’s bed shortage crisis”, adds Dr Guy Braverman, founder of GAMA Healthcare.
“And this isn’t just about COVID-19.
“There are also a number of diseases which spread through contact and droplets: meningitis, flu, norovirus and C.difficle and these patients should not be put on open, shared wards.”
Over 80 Clinell Rediroom units have now been delivered to six NHS hospitals across England – University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, Royal Preston Hospital, The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, Wye Valley NHS Trust, and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London – to prepare for a second wave.
Patients have said they feel reassured being cared for in the Clinell Redirooms, knowing they won’t be exposed to other patients with COVID-19
Cathy Winfield, executive chief nurse at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, said: “As a trust, we’re absolutely committed to delivering safe patient care.
“Patients have said they feel reassured being cared for in the Clinell Redirooms, knowing they won’t be exposed to other patients with COVID-19.
“We have Clinell Redirooms across our two acute hospital sites and they are utilised on a number of wards.”
- Companies:
- Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust
- Wye Valley NHS Trust
- GAMA Healthcare
- Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust
- Royal Preston Hospital
- University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust
