Working together - Philips
Transcript of Working together - Philips
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the 23rd week) from its sister hospitals. The NICU has 20
beds, 12 of which have ventilators available.
Continued satisfaction
With a wealth of experience, the NICU prides itself on
always being at the forefront of what is possible. The move
to a newly refurbished location in the hospital provided an
opportunity to update the monitoring in the unit to the
new IntelliVue central and bedside monitors. The general
satisfaction with the existing Philips monitoring was a
major reason in deciding for Philips monitors again.
“Obviously with the flat, touchscreeens they are easier to
work with” says Mrs. Dorothee Rissler, Neonatal Intensive
Care Nurse. Staying with Philips also means less difficulty
getting used to the way the new monitors work, and reusing
the measurement modules they already have.
Also in Philips favour was that, because they are developed
locally, there are various opportunities for cooperation. The
paediatric clinic has already been involved in testing many
developments. This not only helps Philips improve their
products, but as Dr. Gerald Nachtrodt, Head of the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, points out, it keeps the clini-
With four nearby regional hospitals, the Böblingen regional
hospital became part of a network called the South-west
Clinic in mid-2006. This means up to seven senior special-
ists are available to consult on a diagnosis or treatment. This
sharing of expertise makes these smaller hospitals competi-
tive with larger organisations, such as nearby university
clinics.
The NICU has been part of the paediatric department since
the late 1960s and is an integral part of the hospitals perinatal
centre. Even before the South-west Clinic, the NICU was
looking after the sick and premature babies (from as early
Philips monitoring and supplies are important parts of the competitivenessof the NICU in the South-west Clinic, in Germany
Working together
W ith changes in financing the German
health system, regional hospitals are
looking at ways to make themselves attractive to
potential patients. For the hospital in Böblingen,
south of Stuttgart, this means a new business and
clinical partnership with nearby hospitals, where
they can share expertise to increase both their
effectiveness and their efficiency. An important
precedent for such networking was already set by
the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), which
already worked with the other hospitals.
cians abreast of emerging technologies. It also gives them a
chance to evaluate new applications fully. The most impor-
tant feedback here is from the nursing staff, as they are the
ones who have to work most closely with any new equip-
ment. They would not have the same chance to experience
the equipment fully in a normal evaluation, or influence
how it works.
Competitive advantage
“With good monitoring and a good laboratory,” explains
Dr. Nachtrodt, “we can save the children from many exami-
nations and most antibiotic treatments,” by detecting risks
or symptoms at an earlier stage where they are more easily
treated and the prognoses are better. This is something that
parents notice, to the benefit of the clinic’s standing.
“Monitoring is becoming increasingly important,” adds
Prof. Dr. Manfred Teufel, Head of the Children’s Clinic,
“and not having good monitoring would be a competitive
disadvantage.” He has found that, with electronic aids for
every part of daily life, many parents now expect measure-
ments of the vital parameters, even for healthy newborns.
Dr. Nachtrodt connects this trend to the number of
above: Dr. Gerald Nachtrodt, Head of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
below: Prof. Dr. Manfred Teufel, Head of the Children’s Clinic
The NICU has 20 beds, many with ventilators, all with monitoringThe South-west Clinic site in Böblingen, Germany
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planned, single-child families too. Many of these parents
invest a lot of emotion in the health and future of their only
child and expect the reassurance of electronic monitoring.
Prof. Teufel expands: As financial pressures mean fewer nurses
on duty, it is technology that ensures continued high-quality
care. This, for example, is why they monitor the vital signs
of all the premature and sick babies in their intermediate
care unit until they are stable enough to go home. For the
less stable patients they use Philips M3 monitors, where the
ECG, respiration and SpO2 curves help them diagnose prob-
lems. The plan is to network the monitors in this area and
use central monitoring at the nurses desk. This will mean
the two nurses on the night shift have an even better over-
view of all their charges, at all times.
Whole solution
Apart from continued good experiences with Philips moni-
toring, the quality of Philips accessories and consumables
was also important in the choice of monitors. “What we
particularly liked were the blood pressure cuffs,” says Dr.
Nachtrodt. “What I find good is that they are so gentle on
the skin,” adds Mrs. Rissler, “and the edges are not as hard
as others, so they don’t leave pressure marks, or injure the
babies.”
They are using single-patient neonatal NBP cuffs, ECG
electrodes and reusable and (for transport) single-patient
SpO2 sensors. The unit regularly evaluates competitive pro-
ducts, and is currently looking at other ECG electrodes.
Mrs. Rissler points out that some other electrodes have better
adhesion. This can be important if the air in the incubator is
humid, or for neonates with vernix caseosa. However, the
Philips electrodes can be removed without discomforting
the baby or damaging the skin. “What is also nice about the
Philips electrodes,” she adds, “is the colours of the pre-
attached leads match the colour-coding on the cable connec-
tor.” This means that even if parents accidentally disturb
the connection, for example, it is easy to reconnect without
having to undress the baby to identify the positions of the
electrodes.
As the new generation of SpO2 sensors from various manu-
facturers hit the market, the NICU tested them all. In the
end, the nurses – whose opinions in such cases are critical,
Dr. Nachtrodt points out – decided to stick with the Philips
sensors. The main reasons are because it is among the easiest
to apply, and gives a good signal for reliable measurements
even when the child is not still. “We are very satisfied with
the Philips supplies,” says Mrs. Rissler.
Working together well is an important part of providing a
rounded solution. And it is competitiveness in their indi-
vidual services, as well as in the network that ensures satis-
faction for patients of the South-west Clinic. <
Philips Neonatal Supplies Mrs. Dorothee Rissler, Neonatal Intensive Care Nurse
Gold Standard50 defibrillators in action at the 2006 Turin Olympics
T he 20th Winter Olympic Games held in Turin,
Italy, on 10 – 26 February, 2006, witnessed the
use of Philips HeartStart MRx defibrillators on the
Piedmont Regional Administration’s healthcare sys-
tem’s emergency vehicles.
The long awaited Turin Olympics witnessed the participa-
tion of hundreds of thousands of people numbering athletes,
coaches, accompanying people, voluntary personnel and spec-
tators. A situation that involved a remarkable effort on the
part of Mobile Accident Unit personnel called to ensure
speedy and effective assistance in case of sudden illness and
accidents. Operational experience proved on the field that
Philips HeartStart MRx defibrillators can provide aid and
become an effective life-saving device.
But how was the decision made to provide rescuers with
such an innovative technological tool as the HeartStart MRx
defibrillator? The request was issued by the Collegno Local
Health Administration, which needed to create First Aid
Centres in all sites where Olympic events took place. There
was also a special need for devices to transfer data from
Emergency Centres to hospitals in real time to establish tar-
geted and effective intervention and treatment. Philips met
the request with its excellent quality, being chosen as the best
supplier in the call for tenders organised for the occasion.
The experience of previous Olympic Games
The next stage was to organize the operational structure
of mobile accident units at the Turin Olympics, explained
Dr. Danilo Bono, Director of the 118 Operations Centre for
Special Edition CA
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Dr. Danilo Bono, Director of the 118 Operations Centre for the Cuneo and Turin provinces