New connectable hospital bed launched

Hill-Rom launches new connectable hospital bed launched to improve patient safety & support day to day nursing tasks

The new HR900 Accella bed and therapy mattress has been launched by leading global medical manufacturer, Hill-Rom to the UK market to help drive patient safety and improve patient outcomes, as well as supporting stretched NHS nurses by simplifying day-to-day tasks including the weighing and early mobilisation of patients.  The innovative product brings together cutting-edge technology with design to significantly enhances caregiver workflow, improving safety and allowing them to spend more time on face to face patient care.

Designed with care-giver efficiency in mind, the HR900 Accella is equipped with several features to simplify nursing tasks including;

• Integrated technology – In bed Scale (Simple Weigh) allowing caregivers to weigh and calculate patients BMI accurately via a series of easy to follow prompts. Capability to complete patient X-Ray’s in bed with new X-Ray accessory, which minimises a task which has to date frequently required more than one caregiver need for patient transfer.
• 3-mode bed exit alarm which alerts the caregiver to potential bed exit events. Settings can be adjusted to the appropriate mode for care setting and patient.
• A one-touch side egress system allowing caregivers to level the bed horizontally and to an ideal height, as well as re-positioning the backrest to achieve the optimal ergonomic conditions for patient egress
• High Pressure Laminate (HPL) sleep-deck sections are easily removable for effective cleaning. Smooth surfaces and removable panels allow for convenient chemical or steam-cleaning and decontamination.

Hospitals have reported as many as 2.8 patient falls per 1,000 bed days in general wards and up to 6.1 patient falls per 1,000 bed days in specialist units ⁽¹⁾.  In 2015/2016, inpatient falls were the most commonly reported incident in acute and community hospitals and cost the NHS an estimated £530M million per year based on maximum patient length of stay impacts ⁽²⁾.  Putting patient safety at the forefront of design helps to prevent falls and the associated unnecessary complications from injuries and patient distress from loss of confidence or isolation as a result of the fall.

The 3-mode bed exit alarm can remain localised to the bed or sent via a WIFI signal to the nursing station or hand-held device, notifying caregivers immediately when a patient that has been identified as a falls risk is attempting to leave the bed. The intelligent night light increases safety when patients egress by promoting visibility, helping patients to gauge the distance from bed to ground. The night light will also change from amber to green when left in the safe low position for patients that are at risk of falling, reducing patient disturbance during times of rest.

Research has shown that despite the importance of patient weighing for accurate prescription of medication, increased fluid balance and assessment of nutrition. Bodyweight measurements are recorded in only 13.5-55% of all in-patient cases. Nurses cited the additional workload, lack of available equipment and patient handling as reasons for their reluctance to take patient weight ⁽³⁾. Eliminating the need for strenuous patient transfer when x-raying and weighing patients saves caregivers time, prevents worries of physical overload and ensures equipment is always available to staff.

In addition, the HR900 Accella, helps to support the early and consistent mobilisation of patients which has been shown to significantly enhance outcomes. Patient immobility in hospitals can considerably increase length of stays and lead to higher treatment costs putting strain on valuable NHS resources ⁽⁴⁾.  Research has shown that implementing a structured early mobility programme can reduce complications and in turn reduce average patient length of stay across the different areas of the hospital environment ⁽⁵⁾.The HR900 Accella can be articulated simply into many positions to support in bed, up from bed or out of bed mobility, features include:

• Adjustable Head-of-bed (HOB) & HOB alarm to maintain the optimal angle for breathing and help reduce to respiratory complications.
• 17^ȯ reverse Trendelenberg providing orthostatic conditioning
• Easy Chair position to improve gas exchange
• One-touch side egress to build patient strength.

The latest advancement in the Hill-Rom family, also includes a newly launched plug-in mattress which converts the HR900 Accella into the HR900 Accella Therapy. This mattress offers the user innovative new features which help to both prevent and treat pressure ulcers. Pressure ulcers are reported by an average of 1 in 5 patients in acute care settings and cost an estimated £30,000 per case ^{(6, 7)}.  The HR900 Accella Therapy comes equipped with real-time pressure adjustment, controlled by the ‘internal I-mmersion pressure sensor’ which adjusts to each patient’s needs, according to their size, shape and position in the bed, without the need for caregivers to intervene. Hill-Rom’s trademarked ‘SlideGuard technology’ can also reduce patient migration by up to 50% ⁽⁸⁾, not only minimising need for repositioning by healthcare professionals, but also reducing shear and friction that can influence skin breakdown as well as improving abdominal compression helping to improve patient safety.

James Rhodes, Marketing Manager, Early Mobilisation and Falls Prevention at Hill-Rom comments; “Hill-Rom has an enviable 85-year heritage in the medical technology field.  The introduction of the Hill-Rom HR900 Accella and Accella Therapy demonstrates how integrated technology can benefit both patients and caregivers, allowing beds to become the central care station for patients during their stay in hospital. These valuable additions to the HR900 range can help protect patients, speed up recoveries and assist us in managing increasingly complex conditions.

Hospitals face consistent challenges to improve patient safety, protect from infections, and other complications during their stay. We are excited to be able to introduce cutting-edge technology which will help to address some of these issues, as well support nursing staff by simplifying their day to day tasks.”

For more information visit: hill-rom.co.uk.

References

1. NHS Improvement. The Incidence and Costs of inpatient falls in hospitals. National Health Service; 2017. https://improvement.nhs.uk/documents/1471/Falls_report_July2017.v2.pdf
2. Ibid
3. Flentje K, Knight C, Stromfeldt I, Chakrabarti A, Friedman N. Recording patient bodyweight in hospitals: are we doing well enough?. Internal Medicine Journal. 2018;48(2):124-128.
4. Brophy et al. Reducing incidence of low-back injuries reduces cost. Jul/Aug 2001
5. Titsworth WL, et al. The effect of increased mobility on morbidity in the neurointensive care unit. J. Neurosurg. 2012; 116: 1379-1388.
6. Annual epidemiological report on communicable disease in Europe, 2008, ECDC http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/healthtopics/healthcare-associated_infections/Pages/index.aspx.
7. Banks M, Graves N, Bauer J, Ash S. The costs arising from pressure ulcers attributable to malnutrition. Clinical Nutrition. 2010; 29: 180-6.
8. Internal Hill-Rom study, 2017, comparing Accella vs. competitor bed without SlideGuard.

Product brochure & specifications: https://www.hill-rom.co.uk/uk/Products/Products-by-Category/hospital-beds–long-term-care-beds/hillrom-900-accella/