Fall Prevention Equipment – NHS Evaluation
Econogard has completed an evaluation with the NHS, looking at products to help with Fall Prevention. The Government has recently being putting emphasis on hospitals to prevent patients falling out of their beds, and we have worked with the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading to achieve this aim. Fall prevention is a top priority for the Government and strategy for the Primary Care Trust.
Various products and equipment were tested during this evaluation, consisting of an “out of ward” test carried out by a BA student from the University of Reading, followed by an “in ward” test through the installation of the preferred product in two wards at the hospital.
The Econogard monitoring product of choice proposed was that of the “Bed-Ex” Bed Occupancy Monitor Sheet interfaced with an Alert-iT Pager and Bedside Monitor. The Bed-Ex Sheet is made from Tyvek and has a circuit printed on its surface; this works by detecting the proximity of the patient rather than their weight.
The Bed-Ex sheet is an early warning product rather than one that lets you know the fall has already occurred – ideal in a hospital environment where the patients are often elderly and weakened by their illness and therefore prone to falling.
