Design Bugs Out : Medical Devices from Design Council UK

The UK Design Council has recently commissioned a series of useful medical equipment concepts aiming to diminish the spread of germs. Under this initiative, the council has designed various products such as a easy to clean, durable, comfortable and cleverly usable porter’s chair that will definitely reduce the number of user ‘touchpoints’ where germs can be spread. Another product is an ‘intelligent’ mattress that can change color when it comes with the contact of body fluids. A patient bedside arrangement, featuring bedside storage along with an easy to clean over-bed table made of scratch-proof materials. The 21st century portable commode is another useful product that will eliminate the potential of spreading out the germs and can be cleaned easily. A smart canella is another helpful equipment by the council that can tell the staff when it is time to change the intravenous lines.
The main goal of these useful and innovative designs for hospital furniture and apparatuses is to help fight against healthcare associated infections such as MRSA and HCAIs. The prototypes have used cutting edge techniques in order to reshape the patient transport, bedside environment and usual medical equipments keeping easy clean in mind. The design also influences staff and patient behavior to lessen the probability of exposure to HCAIs.