Over the past few years, medical technology has evolved so much that it is now an integral part of the clinician’s workflow. The information received by the medical device is automatically sent to the computer for analysis by clinicians in real time.
The technology is used to diagnose and treat the patient, which allows you to make decisions much faster on how to care for the patient based on the information recorded by the devices.
Bedside devices, such as vital signs monitoring or artificial ventilation, are used by the attending physician or respiratory therapist to make treatment decisions.
This affects the design of medical facilities, as the equipment must be placed in the room in the best place. Previously, the situation was as follows: the equipment was in a special room, transferred to the ward if necessary and after use was returned to its place.
There is now equipment that is used throughout the treatment process. Thus, racks with equipment and facilities are placed in more wards, because the equipment must be near the patient.
When should technology be considered when designing a space?
As soon as possible. Once you have a clear idea of the general purpose of the space, it’s time to think about medical technology, this can be done with the help of hospital management consultancy in India.
Because construction is very expensive these days, you can’t easily redesign space to accommodate a larger device or a new type that requires a voltage of 208 instead of 120. Changing orders kills a project, and viewing a project kills a schedule.
You need to decide on all the necessary equipment or at least the categories of devices at an early stage of design. We call this a technological vision that should emerge, perhaps, during the development of a master plan.
Will robots continue to be used in surgery and other clinical areas? What are the problems associated with this?
The use of robots in surgery is growing. Does it help improve treatment outcomes? There are studies that show that this helps reduce blood loss and faster recovery of the patient due to small surgical incisions.
But there are cost components to using robotic surgery that can make it unprofitable for a hospital. Robots have reusable components, i.e. surgical instruments attached to the ends of robotic hoses that can be used up to 10 times, after which they must be disposed of.
We should not forget about the cost of the service contract. It is rare for a hospital to have its own engineering department for the maintenance of surgical robots. Most hospitals that practice robotic surgery also have a service contract.
What are the issues with designing and planning a hybrid operating room?
Hybrid operating rooms are a complex environment because many different medical professionals use the same space, such as a cardiac surgeon, vascular surgeon, neurosurgeon, interventional radiologist, and others.
Each of them has a unique need for image processing systems that go in conjunction with a hybrid operating room – various consumables and other ancillary equipment.
The functionality of the room and its lighting are important. Many hybrid operating rooms use ceiling imaging systems. Each of the medical specialties has different requirements for the positioning of surgical lighting. When you have a C-arc that interferes with lighting, it can’t just be located anywhere.
From the beginning of designing a hybrid operating room, you need to start planning where the equipment will be located and who will use it, you can make this work easier by contacting hospital planners and medical equipment consultants.