Supporting personalised care at Spire Leeds Hospital with 65 new specialist beds

Towards the end of 2019, we handed over 65 Interlude Newcare V3 beds to Spire Leeds Hospital. The handover marked the final step in a project to replace the hospital’s previous beds with a more manoeuvrable and versatile model.

Innova worked closely with the team at Spire Leeds Hospital over several weeks to ensure we recommended a bed that met their patient and staff requirements. So, we are thrilled that we’ve now successfully supplied all the new beds! Here’s a look at what was involved in finding the best bed for personalised care at Spire Leeds Hospital.

About Spire Leeds Hospital

Spire Leeds Hospital is one of Yorkshire’s largest private hospitals. They pride themselves on providing fast, personalised care and treatment across more than 30 medical specialties. So, it was important that any new beds supported them in providing high-quality care for a wide range of patients.

The hospital is part of the award-winning Spire Healthcare Group. They have 39 hospitals, 8 clinics and one oncology centre across England, Wales and Scotland, making them one of the UK’s largest private hospital providers.

Choosing a hospital bed for personalised care

Step 1: Consultation

After speaking to the hospital team and doing some initial research, Joe Hulbert, Sales Director at Innova, created a shortlist of bed options. He then went to visit the hospital and discussed each option with key staff — outlining the different features and benefits of each bed.

By listening to their top requirements for a bed, Joe was then able to recommend the Interlude Newcare V3 care bed for a trial.

Step 2: Trial & Training

At the beginning of the Interlude bed trial, we delivered training to all staff who typically operate or clean the hospital beds.

This ensured everyone was confident using the bed and could go about their work as normal so the hospital could get the most out of the trial. The focus was on reviewing how well the bed catered to their patient’s needs rather than learning how to operate the brakes or the leg raise function!

Step 3: Feedback & Recommendations

Once the 3-week trial period was completed, Joe returned to Spire Leeds Hospital to gather their feedback. At Innova, we ask a range of questions to get a full picture of whether a trial was successful. For example — what did different members of staff think about the bed, did patients find the bed comfortable, and importantly, were there any issues or concerns?

The staff agreed that the trial was a success and the Interlude bed had met their requirements.

Joe was therefore confident in recommending the Interlude Newcare V3 as the hospital bed that was reliable, durable, and adaptable enough to suit the individual needs of Spire Leeds Hospital’s patients. In fact, the team liked the bed so much they opted to keep the trial bed until their full order was delivered!

Step 4: Handover & Further Training

Spire Leeds Hospital then placed an order for 65 Interlude Newcare V3 care beds. We arranged delivery for a time that suited patients and staff, then scheduled further training to ensure all staff knew how to operate the new beds safely and effectively.

Catherine Taylor, Nursing Services Manager at Spire Leeds Hospital, described how thorough and straightforward the process was:

“Seamless process from start to finish. Joe arranged a visit with the ward manager, ward sister and physiotherapists to discuss bed options best suited to our patients. A trial Interlude bed was arranged within 2 weeks and training on the bed was provided on the first day to porters, housekeepers, nurses and physiotherapists.

Having trialled 2 other beds, the Interlude Newcare V3 bed met our requirements of easy manoeuvrability and suitability for our standard ward patients, bariatric patients, and younger patients. There were lots of options available – a narrow bed for ease in tight corridors, extension mattress platforms for our taller patients, bed controls built into the bed, and the handset with the option for a nurse-control-only unit at the end of the bed.

After the trial, arrangements were made to replace all our hospital beds. There was excellent communication from the Innova team regarding scheduling delivery without disrupting the service we provide to our patients. Joe returned to the hospital to provide additional training on the delivery day to educate nurses, physiotherapists, porters, housekeepers and ODPs.

Further training was arranged for 2-weeks post-delivery to ensure any user errors are clarified and update staff who missed previous training. I have no hesitation in recommending Innova to other healthcare providers.”

We are pleased to say this isn’t the end of our work with Spire Healthcare! Innova are now performing full bed and mattress audits across all their UK hospitals.

Why are Interlude care beds good for hospitals?

The Interlude range of electric profiling beds is the result of 40 years of technological developments and design work.

All beds are infection control-friendly and have built-in auto-regression as standard, allowing the bed and the mattress to move as one and exert a minimal amount of friction on the patient’s body. This promotes pressure relief and good circulation for long-stay patients that are confined to their beds.

There are also more than 10 additional accessories to choose from, including x-ray plates, IV poles and nightlights. This allows the beds to be customised for personalised patient care.