SCREENswitch: Switchable Opacity Patient Isolation Systems

SCREENswitch：可切换不透明患者隔离系统

• 批准号: 79146
• 金额: $ 7.63万
• 依托单位: KORN WALL LIMITED
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Small Business Research Initiative
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2020 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=79146
• 关键词: SCREENswitch; Switchable; Opacity; Patient; Isolation

Many people have been put into isolation in hospitals due to COVID-19 and this will continue into the future if the pandemic persists. Using partition screens is one of the most hygienic ways to segregate patients but they are limited by the fact that they are either opaque or transparent. There is need for both options, as patients require privacy but also must not be left to feel completely secluded; there are well documented negative mental health impacts on patients who have undergone extended periods of isolation. There is therefore a need for patients who are isolated in hospitals to have both the option of privacy, and to be able to see the rest of their ward. SCREENswitch is a feasibility study to understand whether Smart Glass, which switches from being opaque to clear at the click of a button, can be used in creating retractable hospital screening partitions. These would transform the delivery of in-ward patient isolation, giving the patient the control over their environment, minimising the stress on their mental health. Currently, there is no solution that allows for a clear infection control screen to become opaque at the touch of a button. Instead, an external product must be used alongside the clear screen to allow for privacy. These products, such as curtains, are usually unhygienic and inconvenient to use. Most worryingly, 90% of curtains used in NHS hospitals are made of disposable polypropylene, disposed of by incineration or landfill every few months, which is damaging the environment. Working with UCLH, SCREENswitch would help lead to a more sustainable public sector, by creating an easy-to-clean and therefore reusable product that can ultimately replace single-use curtains in hospitals with an innovative, sustainable alternative. It would help the NHS recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and implement better isolation systems to prevent further spread of infectious diseases in hospitals and reduce the mental health effects of isolation in the future. KwickScreen has over a decade of experience in designing, manufacturing and selling retractable privacy and infection control screens to hospitals. The company's screens can be found in every NHS trust and their equivalents in the UK. SCREENswitch will work with a specialist producer of Smart Glass. The two companies, who are both local to each other, will work together to carry out this feasibility study, and later development, of creating a switchable-opacity isolation system.

许多人因COVID-19而被隔离在医院，如果疫情持续，这种情况将持续到未来。使用隔离屏是隔离患者的最卫生的方法之一，但它们受到不透明或透明的事实的限制。这两种选择都是必要的，因为病人需要隐私，但也不能让他们感到完全与世隔绝;有充分证据表明，长期隔离对病人的心理健康有负面影响。因此，在医院隔离的病人需要既有隐私的选择，又能看到病房的其他地方。SCREENswitch是一项可行性研究，旨在了解智能玻璃是否可以用于创建可伸缩的医院筛选分区。这将改变病房内病人隔离的方式，使病人能够控制他们的环境，最大限度地减少对他们心理健康的压力。目前，还没有允许在触摸按钮时使清晰的感染控制屏幕变得不透明的解决方案。相反，外部产品必须与清晰的屏幕一起使用，以保护隐私。这些产品，如窗帘，通常不卫生，使用不方便。最令人担忧的是，NHS医院使用的窗帘90%是由一次性聚丙烯制成的，每隔几个月就通过焚烧或填埋处理，这对环境造成了破坏。与UCLH合作，SCREENswitch将通过创造一种易于清洁且可重复使用的产品，最终可以用创新的可持续替代品取代医院中的一次性窗帘，从而帮助建立一个更具可持续性的公共部门。这将有助于NHS从COVID-19大流行中恢复过来，并实施更好的隔离系统，以防止传染病在医院进一步传播，并减少未来隔离对心理健康的影响。KwickScreen在设计、制造和向医院销售可伸缩隐私和感染控制屏幕方面拥有十多年的经验。该公司的屏幕可以在英国的每一个NHS信托基金和同等机构中找到。SCREENswitch将与智能玻璃的专业生产商合作。这两家公司都是本地公司，将共同开展这项可行性研究，并在以后开发一个可切换的不透明隔离系统。