Welcome Brian Grieco to the team - here we are enjoying the new break-out area in The Digital Hub
'Northside People' 22nd Nov 2017
'Northside People' 22nd November 2017
Irish technology and leading European hospital show how a smart hospital can reduce hospital infections
We are proud to be involved with this project, along with SureWash (Ireland).
Efforts to combat hospital “super bugs” highlighted during World Antibiotic Awareness Week
Two Irish medical technology companies, SureWash and MEG Support Tools, have collaborated with the global hand hygiene company GOJO and one of the leading cancer hospitals in the UK, The Christie in Manchester, to demonstrate how “smart hospital” technology can reduce infections without the need for lots of extra personnel. A recent outbreak of CPE (carbapenemase-producing enterobacteriaceae) in Irish hospitals indicated the seriousness of this issue, with a mortality rate of 40-50% recorded among infected patients.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) say that good hand hygiene can prevent up to 50% of infections in hospitals. Preventing infections is critical as these so called “super bugs” are resistant to antibiotics and have a high mortality rate.
Speaking at the start of World Antibiotic Awareness Week, Kerrill Thornhill of MEG Support Tools said; “A multimodal approach to improving hygiene standards is critical in combating hospital acquired infections and the reliance on antibiotics. We are working with SureWash to reduce rates of infection and improve the lives of people across the healthcare system.”
The WHO provide guidelines on when to do hand hygiene (the 5 moments) and on how to do hand hygiene (the 6 poses). But validated training and auditing of these guidelines is very resource intensive and sometimes overlooked. The research carried out was published by the American Journal of Infection Control. Results indicated that integrated digital tools can provide both rich data and novel tools that both measure impact and provide feedback to support the implementation of multimodal hand hygiene campaigns.
The infection control team in the Christie Hospital describe how live data from the MEG audit app, the SureWash interactive training kiosk and GOJO’s SMARTLINK™ dispenser system was combined to create a live data dashboard to facilitate better infection risk management. Analytics were run on the live data to provide actionable feedback to both staff and patients if the standards of hand hygiene practice were slipping.
Patients and their families have a key role to play in infection prevention. However, there are few if any resources available to training patients in clinical infection prevention. During the study, patients were encouraged to learn about hand hygiene using gesture recognition and camera based algorithm technology which teaches them correct hand hygiene technique – 70% of the training episodes were by patients helping them to maintain infection control for wound care post-discharge.
At the annual Infection Prevention Society award in Manchester in September, SureWash & MEG Support Tools also received industry awards voted on by delegates from hospitals across the UK and Ireland.
For more information or interviews, please contact:
SureWash / Glanta Ltd: Dr. Gerry Lacey, info@surewash.com, +353 87 2396567
MEG Support Tools: Kerrill Thornhill, info@megsupporttools.com, +353 87 9349516
Video Link: https://youtu.be/DJsYRstYTjs
Link to research paper: http://www.ajicjournal.org/article/S0196-6553(17)31048-9/fulltext
About Us:
MEG Support Tools
MEG Support Tools enables frontline medical workers to spend more time with patients and less time with administrative workloads by creating mobile first, paperless tools that promote access to information, antimicrobial stewardship and improved reporting in hospitals.
SureWash
SureWash uses camera based vision systems to teach proper hand hygiene technique. By taking learning out of the classroom and direct to where it is needed most, the units or wards, SureWash can help reduce training costs whilst not interrupting workflows. SureWash systems come with a full analytic and reporting suite giving hospitals the tools they need to manage their infection control risk and achieve regulatory compliance.
World Antibiotic Awareness Week, 13-19 November 2017
Today begins the World Health Organisation (WHO) directed 'World Antibiotic Awareness Week'.
Antimicrobial resistance happens when microorganisms (such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites) change when they are exposed to antimicrobial drugs (such as antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, antimalarials, and anthelmintics). Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance are sometimes referred to as “superbugs”. As a result, the medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others. The WHO say that good hand hygiene can prevent up to 50% of infections in hospitals. Preventing infections is critical as super bugs that are resistant to antibiotics and have a high mortality rate. For example, the most recent outbreak of CPE (carbapenemase-producing enterobacteriaceae) in Irish hospitals has a mortality rate of 40-50%.
MEG Support Tools, have collaborated with the global hand hygiene company GOJO and SureWash along with one of the leading cancer hospitals in Europe, The Christie in Manchester, to demonstrate how ‘smart hospital’ technology can reduce these infections without the need for extra personnel.
The infection control team in the Christie Hospital describe how live data from the MEG audit app, the SureWash interactive training kiosk and GOJO’s SMARTLINK™ dispenser system was combined to create a live data dashboard to facilitate better infection risk management. Analytics were generated on the live data to provide actionable feedback to both staff and patients if the standards of hand hygiene practice were slipping.
The results indicate that integrated digital tools can provide rich data that measure impact and provide feedback to support the implementation of multimodal hand hygiene campaigns, reducing the need for significant additional personnel resources.
If you'd like to read further, more details are available online from the American Journal of Infection Control here.
MEG Support Tools enable frontline medical workers to spend more time with patients and less time with administrative workloads by creating mobile first, paperless tools that promote access to information, antimicrobial stewardship and improved reporting in hospitals. If you think this is something that your hospital would benefit from, contact Kerrill on;
087 394 9516
Health Innovation Week 20-25th October
Health Innovation Week is a series of interactive events that encourage creation, learning and collaboration by showcasing the innovations that have the power to transform the Irish healthcare system and build a better health service.
eHealth Ireland, with their partners, will host these free events to inspire all of us to make sense of the challenges that we face in healthcare. It doesn't matter if you are a clinician, a researcher, a service user or a student - there is something for everyone.
Monday the 23rd willl feature The Innovation Showcase and will demonstrate the progress in the creation of a digital fabric that is transforming the Irish healthcare system. eHealth Ireland will take over the Printworks for a special one- day exhibition, presentations and series of workshops to reveal highlights of eHealth projects in Ireland and showcase the leading digital and connected technologies, which will revolutionise Irish healthcare by 2030.
Our Founder / CEO Kerrill will be there to field any questions from clients and clinicians and will also be sitting on panel dicsussion on Monday 23rd October. If you'd like any further information get in touch;
info@megsupporttools.com // 01 679 1597 // www.megsupporttools.com