Operating theatre technology has developed significantly in recent years, with increasing automation and control of functions like lighting, pendants, cameras, and viewing screens.
A growing focus on infection control, the ability to stream footage of live surgery to other locations for training, and the growth of technology designed to enable surgeons to operate laparoscopically, resulting in less invasive procedures, faster recovery times, and enhanced throughput. Against this backdrop, HEJ examines how some of the latest operating theatre systems are benefting users.
Advances in surgical techniques have been considerable in recent years, with, for example, a major growth in the number of procedures undertaken via laparoscopic, or ‘keyhole’ surgery, an operating technique which is not only significantly less invasive than open surgery, but also, proponents argue, carries less post-surgical infection risk, and entails faster recovery times. A surgical speciality, meanwhile, where an ageing population has helped fuel increasing demand is orthopaedics. Indeed, according to the British Orthopaedic Association, orthopaedic surgeons and consultants now make up around 40 per cent of the total surgical workforce in the UK and Ireland (see also panel, page 72). Consulting engineer, Crofton, has recently completed a ‘challenging’ M&E contract at Ashford’s William Harvey Hospital in Kent, as part of Cardy Construction’s delivery of a new ‘high tech’ orthopaedic operating theatre and modern obstetric operating theatre there. Ian Marriott, the Crofton director heading the project, explained: “The need for ‘ultra clean’ air in the orthopaedic theatre saw a Howorth Exflow 28 laminar flow system installed. Two major challenges were a lack of space in the ceiling void for the services, and the hospital’s high dependency unit (HDU) being directly above, with its own services in the same void. “Fortunately, some redundant services could be stripped out to make room, but this work, and the new services’ installation, required careful planning, and saw us compile detailed drawings for the contractor, who we also intensively monitored to ensure there was no disruption to the medical equipment in the HDU. Much of the existing pipework and ductwork could not be moved, but we identified areas that could be diverted.”
New obstetrics theatre
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