March’s “Big Bang” Science fair, a two-day event held in Manchester aimed at encouraging young people to consider a career in the engineering and science sector, saw IHEEM head office personnel and North-West branch members field a wide range of questions from young visitors on the role and importance of healthcare engineering and estates management in a modern-day health service.
As HEJ editor Jonathan Baillie reports, supported by bedhead services system supplier Static Systems, and Leeds’s Thackray Medical Museum, IHEEM was also able to demonstrate to visitors the evolution of medical engineering by contrasting hospital equipment of the past with that of the present and future.
This year’s “Big Bang: UK Young Scientists’ and Engineers’ Fair”, held at Manchester Central (the venue for the 2010 Healthcare Estates conference and exhibition), was the second in the event’s history, and the organisers must have been delighted that attendance figures released in mid-March showed that some 22,545 people attended, over three times the number at 2009’s inaugural fair. According to the organisers, the fair, which featured the National Science and Engineering Competition (a Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills initiative in response to a recommendation in Lord Sainsbury’s report, “The Race to the Top”, which invites 11-18-year-olds to submit projects from all areas of science, technology, engineering, and maths), is “the largest single celebration of science and engineering aimed exclusively at children and young people”. This year nearly 15,500 of the visitors were young people, with 312 entering the National Science and Engineering Competition, and 100 partners and sponsors, including such big names as Astra Zeneca, BAE Systems, Shell, and Siemens, lending their support. Special guests included Lord Mandelson; the presenter team from the BBC’s new “Bang Goes The Theory” science programme; Professor Jim Al-Khalili, professor of theoretical physics at the University of Surrey (where he also holds a chair in public engagement in science); Professor Marcus du Sautoy, the second holder of the Charles Simonyi chair in the public understanding of science at Oxford University, an author of several popular books on mathematics, and senior media fellow of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council; resident “Blue Peter” “science expert” Steve Mould, and national STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers coordinator for the Department of Children, Schools, and Families (DCSF), seasoned speaker on science/engineering, and presenter of the BBC 2 TV programme, “Museum of Life”, Kate Bellingham. (She was also the keynote speaker at IHEEM’s 2009 Annual Conference Dinner)
Engineering institutes’ role
The main IHEEM presence was at the fair’s “Tomorrow’s Engineers & Scientists” zone, which provided a focus for visitors keen to discover more about the engineering institutes’ role within their particular industries, and the support they can offer to students considering an engineering/ technology career. Alongside IHEEM, the Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Royal Society of Chemistry were among a number of other professional institutes to have representatives on hand. Members of IHEEM’s North-West branch, supported by staff from the Portsmouth head office, had a steady flow of visitors keen to hear more about the Institute’s activities. Jeff Pickering, IHEEM’s events/education manager, said: “In particular, a number of teachers were keen to explore the possibility of careers talks and technical presentations at local schools.” Keith Feay, currently secretary, and a former chairman, of IHEEM’s North-West branch, and an expert in X-ray technology who spent over 30 years working for X-ray systems manufacturers before establishing his own consultancy (HEJ – November 2009), was one of those asked to share his expertise. He explained: “I was delighted to be approached by a local secondary school to give a presentation on the history of X-ray equipment, and to also be asked to talk on the subject at one of the evening events regularly held by Leeds’s Thackray Museum.” “Discussions with EngineeringUK during the event suggested they were looking to further develop the Institute Area at future Big Bang events,” Jeff Pickering added. IHEEM also had a significant presence within the “Body Talk” zone on the main show floor. The centrepiece of this stand was a “Ward of the future” display provided by Static Systems. This comprised a single-bed ward demonstrating many of the advanced engineering solutions now available, in terms not only of essential medical equipment such as medical gases, but equally components designed to enhance a hospital stay, from “mood lighting” to the latest nurse call systems. “Particularly popular with younger visitors were advanced hospital beds (from ArjoHuntleigh) which, generally with a show visitor ‘on board’, demonstrated not only full manoeuvrability, but also the ability to weigh a patient, and to detect if the individual was no longer on the bed,” said Jeff Pickering. “Staff on the stand were thus able to highlight, in a practical, hands-on way, both how the latest technology is employed within a healthcare setting, and the need to consider ergonomics and patient safety.”
Equipment from the past
IHEEM was delighted also to have Leeds’s Thackray Medical Museum supporting the stand. Museum staff demonstrated a range of medical equipment from a bygone age. Jeff Pickering said: “The range of somewhat scary apparatus highlighted very clearly the need for advancement in hospital technology, and put the ward of the future in context for many visitors. A whiff of the carbolic soap brought back memories for some of the more mature visitors, recalling their own experience of hospitals in years gone by. “The various displays generated a great deal of interest throughout the three days, with large groups of schoolchildren on the stand for much of this period. Staff from IHEEM, Static Systems, and the Thackray Museum, were kept extremely busy by the very enthusiastic, and inquisitive, visitors.” Delphi Tatarus, learning and outreach manager at the Thackray Museum, added: “We were delighted to be able to work with IHEEM and Static Systems. When running a medical museum with exhibits dating back as far as the 17th Century it is really important to be able, equally, to keep up to speed with the latest medical equipment, systems, and technology. Among the items we showed were carbolic soap, an old glass syringe barrel, a blood pressure monitor used in earlier days, and a Victorian bedpan.” Alongside the many young stand visitors, among the “more mature” visitors were Lady Jennifer Cleaver (wife of EngineeringUK chair Sir Anthony Cleaver), Brian Ibbon MP – an organic chemist and specialist in chemical science of considerable repute, and three of the presenters from the BBC’s “Bang Goes The Theory” TV show. Many of the younger visitors found their way to the section of the stand built by Static Systems Group depicting how a future single bed ward might look in UK hospitals. The “concept ward” – inspired by the anticipated dramatic growth in single bed accommodation in UK hospitals – was displayed at the invitation of IHEEM in conjunction with EngineeringUK. A key target audience for the science fair was school leavers considering careers in science and engineering, and Static Systems personnel who attended and manned the company’s stand say they were “delighted with the reaction of the young audience”. Director Phil Wade said: “They rather liked our future ward, which was fitted out with the very latest technological innovations and ideas for the future. We got some great feedback, and it helped them think about how hospitals may be changing to improve patient care.”
Nurse call/bedhead systems
The concept ward features the latest nurse call and bedhead services solutions, along with what Static Systems says are “some advanced concepts in ward design”. These include full connectivity of the bed to integrate nurse call, patient entertainment, and “exit alarms”. These features, along with automatic nurse presence, low energy lighting, and IP integration, are intended to stimulate debate on how technology might be used to enhance the patient environment and assist in issues such as infection control and patient safety. Phil Wade added: “Our stand provided further evidence of Static Systems’ commitment to supporting education and training among young people. Around 15 per cent of our current 340 staff have completed apprenticeships at our Staffordshire headquarters, and 12 former apprentices are now part of the senior management team. Others have roles in fields as diverse as sales, research and development, production, project management, and quality assurance. Static Systems’ manufacturing director Philip Marsh said: “For some intelligent and ambitious young people, modern engineering apprenticeships provide an appropriate and realistic route to a rewarding career. “The Big Bang fair will have inspired many school leavers to explore careers in engineering and science, and that has to be a good thing for the future of UK engineering.”
‘Concept’ single bed ward
The concept single bed ward is now installed at Static Systems’ Wombourne headquarters. IHEEM’s Jeff Pickering said of the event as a whole: “The IHEEM and Static Systems teams were most encouraged by both the number and variety of visitors to the stand – from MPs and television celebrities to top scientists. Most encouraging of all were the inquisitiveness and interest of the many young visitors. “During the final afternoon, for instance, a Year 10 student and his parents came to the stand to discuss possible career options. The youngster was studying ‘double maths’, and had been told by his careers master that, with his clear aptitude for figures, he should consider a career in accountancy. I took him though what I considered engineering to be: the problem solving, the creative process, the moments of discovery, the ‘doing something new’ and, most importantly, ‘the making a difference’. He seemed genuinely enlightened that there were alternatives to a future in accountancy, and hopefully went away with lots to think about as he considered his career path.” Regional “Big Bang” fairs are now scheduled to take place across the UK this June and July; see The Big Bang website: www.thebigbangfair.co.uk IHEEM’s representation at The Big Bang 2010 was endorsed by the Institute’s Education Committee, who will shortly be considering the Institute’s involvement in next year’s national event, to be held at London’s ExCel exhibition centre from 10-11 March, 2011. Any IHEEM members keen to be involved should contact Jeff Pickering. T: 023 9282 3186; email: jeff.pickering@iheem.org.uk
