RECENT NEWS

Improved patient care and safety, higher patient and clinician satisfaction, enhanced “process efficiency”, savings in clinical time, and fewer patients delays, were among the benefits of Belfast Royal Victoria Hospital’s recent deployment at of a Vocera Communications hands-free voice communication system.

Hospedia, a new company which, subject to OFT approval, looks set to run over 80,000 NHS bedside systems UK-wide until now operated by Patientline UK and Premier Telesolutions, says up to 10 million hospital patients a year can expect “lower incoming call charges, better service and more reliable equipment”.

The Conservative Party says figures recently obtained by it under the Freedom of Information Act suggest the cleanliness of most NHS hospitals in England is “threatened by frequent invasions of rats, fleas, bedbugs, flies and cockroaches”.

The Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management would like to congratulate the following, who had IHEEM grades awarded recently:

IHEEM branch secretaries and individual Institute members with interesting news on branch events, personal career triumphs and challenges, and any other stories of a general estates-related nature they feel would interest Health Estate Journal’s readers are being encouraged to submit text and photos to editor Jonathan Baillie for potential inclusion in HEJ’s Institute News pages.

Recruitment and membership manager Chris Parker is keen to hear from registered Engineering Technician IHEEM members who would be keen to serve on the Institute’s Membership Committee.

The Institute’s new president, Rob Smith, made his first visit to the IHEEM Headquarters in Portsmouth recently. The visit was an opportunity for him to meet the team at IHEEM and to discuss his vision and objectives for the future of the Institute.

UK health organisations and the Central Office of Information have been undertaking a review of healthcarebased standards and specifications (HBNs, HTMs etc), and the way such material is presented. IHEEM has been asked to contribute input to the working group heading up the task.

IHEEM would like to remind members to complete and return the paperbased questionnaire on membership issues and benefits circulated with August’s Health Estate Journal by no later than 30 September.

Kirsty Phelan (pictured) has joined IHEEM in a recently created post as the Institute’s administration officer.

Due to a recent retirement the Institute is looking for a member to join the Journal Committee. Ideally the member should be working in the health service at an NHS Trust.

IHEEM members’ views are being sought on whether the Engineering Council UK (ECUK) should support a statement by five Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) that calls for the European Commission, and in particular its powerful DG Competition directorate, to continue to respect the self-governing structure of “liberal professions” such as engineering, architecture and medicine.

The London Branch and Surrey Discussion Centre is holding its next meeting at Tolworth Hospital on Wednesday 10 September 2008 at 5.30 pm.

Following the success of last year’s seminar on the topic, IHEEM is now planning a series of one-day seminars for later this year designed to provide a Decontamination update.

Are some engineers failing in their quest to become registered because they do not have access to a mentor?

Thousands of people across Sandwell in the West Midlands will benefit from a £80 million investment in new health and neighbourhood centres.

Plans to greatly improve the basic site infrastructure, including access roads, car parks and walkways, at Morriston Hospital in Swansea have been approved by Welsh Health Minister Edwina Hart.

The Engineering Council UK (ECUK) is to address the current lack of any professional qualification for IT and communication systems technicians by offering them the chance to apply for registration as information and communications technology technicians. Those meeting the competence requirements for entry onto the new register will be granted the post-nominal title ICTTech.

B.Braun Sterilog recently helped get operations at Birmingham’s The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital (ROH) rapidly back on schedule after problems in the hospital’s sterilising department forced it to cancel the majority of its operating lists over a three-day period.

BSI British Standards has published a new document which aims to prevent injury or death due to cross-connection between small bore connectors used in different fields of medical application.