RECENT NEWS

A nationwide campaign entitled Food Watch is to discover patient and visitor views on hospital food.

In response to the announcement that the Department of Health is to create Local Involvement Networks (LINks) to replace PPI Forums, the chair of the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH), Sharon Grant, has commented: “PPI Forums with their 5,000 members have achieved so much in a short timescale. Their impact has been felt throughout the entire NHS.

New arrangements for the supply and delivery of healthcare-related products to the NHS will save £1 billion, states the Department of Health which adds that this can be reinvested in frontline patient services.

A £30 million neighbourhood hospital in Cynon Valley, Wales, has been granted outline planning consent. The scheme, which has been designed by HLM Architects for the North Glamorgan NHS Trust, will provide primary care support for the residents of Rhondda Cynon Taf.

In a speech to the NHS in the North West, Health Minister Andy Burnham reiterated his continued determination to make improvements to patients’ environments a priority.

Among new members recently welcomed by IHEEM are Andrew Tweedie and Martin Goodway.

CurTec, the Netherlands-based manufacturers of high performance UN plastic drums and material handling solutions, has announced that Solent Plastics will be responsible for the sales of its CurTec range of plastic-lidded crates.

Railite is a new lighting solution which has been launched by Aura Corporation Ltd, manufacturers of Actulite Polarised Daylight Lighting and AuraTech Electronic LED Lighting.

At TMP, the company ethos is “making good ideas work” and that means finding new ways to use existing products, developing new products that offer safety and value for money, and helping clients to find innovative solutions to their problems.

Nilfisk-Advance is cutting professional cleaning costs with a detergent metering system that reduces water and detergent consumption by up to 50% and 35%, respectively. Nilfisk’s ECO Dosage Solution (EDS) uses a specially designed cartridge system with an adjustable dilution rate selector. Operatives simply match the selector to the recommended dilution ratio and the system automatically dispenses the correct amount of detergent.

Flag UK’s FLAGON SFc single ply membrane has been selected for Brent Emergency Care & Diagnostic Centre (BECad). It provided the flexibility, durability and sustainability required for the curved roofing canopies.

Launched by deister electronic UK, one of the world’s largest independent manufacturers of RFID solutions for a wide variety of access control and identification applications, is bioProx, a range of class leading biometric identification devices which provide real life access control through fingerprint recognition.

Sulo MGB has entered the clinical bin market with the launch of a new family of ADR-compliant clinical wheeled waste containers. They are designed for the safe containment and transportation of medical waste from hospitals, medical and care centres. Available with a wide range of specifications, the clinical containers are designed to meet all UN clinical waste requirements.

During a ceremony at the company’s Stockport factory, Hughes Safety Showers has received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise International Trade from the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Colonel Sir John Timmins. The company supplies emergency safety showers, eyebaths and decontamination equipment.

Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, the largest paediatric hospital in Western Europe treating more than 200,000 children per year, has recently cooperated with Philips to create a less intimidating atmosphere for patients undergoing MRI scanning. Working closely with the hospital, Philips Lighting, together with Philips Medical Systems, created a room with a soft emotional environment.

New medical device safety testing technology developed by Rigel Medical, part of the Seaward Group, incorporates significant benefits for test engineers, service firms and contractors involved in the electrical safety testing of electromedical equipment in hospitals.

Firm action and constant vigilance are needed for hospitals and other healthcare sites to ensure safe environments where medical staff can concentrate on delivering quality health services to the public, says Alan Hazell, UK sales manager of electronic security solutions provider Secom plc.

The Engineering and Technology Board has appointed Stephen Timms OBE MBA MSc CEng MIMechE MIMarEST to the post of operations director.

To help ensure the security and safety of its patients and staff, the new Evelina Children’s Hospital in London has installed Bewator’s Entro 5 access control system.

Lone worker safety is being highlighted at a series of nationwide road shows in which Argyll Telecom (www.argylltelecom.com) joins forces with partners Connexion2, Lancashire Ambulance Service, and conflict specialist Maybo to offer advice and guidance to managers on all aspects of lone worker safety including training, policies and technology.