Althea UK and Ireland has launched an ‘Endoscopy Transformation Service’ aimed at NHS and private hospitals ‘striving to meet the demands on their endoscopy services related to increasing demand and the latest regulatory requirements’.
The medical technology services provider says the annual growth in endoscopy procedures is typically creating a ‘demand / capacity mismatch’, and that with the need to meet stringent regulations, hospitals are ‘struggling to identify long-term solutions without interrupting their service’.
To support them in developing sustainable long-term cost-effective solutions, Althea has a dedicated endoscopy team of experts able to provide advice and analysis on all aspects of the endoscopy service, backed by architects who have undertaken over 20 endoscopy department projects, and can provide complete build ‘turnkey’ capability.
Althea said: “Both patients’ and professionals’ expectations of endoscopy have increased greatly since the JAG standards were first introduced. Effective leadership and forward planning are essential to creating a modern service that is trusted, focused, and sustainable.
It is our mission to ensure that both facilities and equipment are fully utilised in the most operationally and cost-effective way, meeting JAG, IHEEM, & HTM standards, and to support the anticipated growth in procedures over the next 7-10 years.
David Rolfe, UK&I CEO at Althea, said: “We are pleased to launch this new service helping to increase NHS capacity at a critical time. Althea has been a trusted partner for the acute healthcare sector for the last 20 years; the company manages and maintains medical technology in hospitals, and is entirely vendor-independent, meaning we can combine the best technology from across all manufacturers.”
During the COVID-19 outbreak, Althea says it played a key role in setting up equipment at the London NHS Nightingale Hospital, with its specialist engineers unpacking, building, testing, and commissioning, over 2,750 pieces of equipment to be used at the emergency hospital, and advising the NHS procurement team in sourcing vital equipment.
The company added: ‘An Althea Endoscopy Transformation Service provides the hospital with a proven partnership model to achieve improved quality of care, cost-effectiveness, and utilisation of its facilities. It allows access to build /reconfigure estate, and provides innovative technology for a fixed annual fee, while managing all equipment concerns, including maintenance and ongoing replacement, in a bespoke model.’
Of a recent project at Shrewsbury & Telford NHS Trust, Gina Caton, Endoscopy Operations manager, said: “Althea’s multi-disciplinary team has been the catalyst for change. The team supported a re-design of both our endoscopy departments in line with JAG and HTM requirements. Its analysis of our patient procedure growth clearly demonstrated to us an urgent need for additional clinical and operational capacity. The team has provided invaluable guidance throughout the development of our business case, and ensures that our endoscopy facilities are fit for purpose for several years to come.”
