ICJ recently visited Sheffield Children\u2019s to speak to the Matron for Medicine Care Group, Joanne Reid-Roberts, about the impact that BEAMS has had on nursing practice and patient safety in the new wing. We also asked Paul Rawlinson, Managing Director of TBG Solutions<\/a> and sister company Tutum Medical<\/a>, to speak to ICJ about the inception, design and roll-out of BEAMS, and about his vision for the future of BEAMS.<\/p>\n Although not a medical device company, TBG Solutions is no stranger to highly complex technology, operating as a provider of testing, measurement, and control solutions to the aerospace, automotive, defence, medical and energy sectors. As such, they were well placed to take up Sheffield Children\u2019s challenge, which Paul Rawlinson explains: \u201cMost monitoring systems require central monitoring, and every piece of equipment needs to be plugged in to power and ethernet. If you\u2019ve got eight or nine different pieces from different manufacturers, your only option is to have eight or nine central monitoring systems.<\/p>\n \u201cAlternatively, you can go to a third party who will give you one interface, but you need to have the software library to mimic the instrument or touchscreen. If you need to add a new piece of equipment and there\u2019s no software library from these third parties, then there is no interface. These solutions are also expensive,\u201d adds Paul.<\/p>\n After a period of close consultation between Sheffield Children\u2019s and TBG Solutions, the latter \u201cconcluded that for the best possible benefit to patient safety, you need a nurse in each room \u2013 which of course, you\u2019re not going to get \u2013 but putting the ear of a nurse in the room is the next best thing.\u201d<\/p>\n From this brief, BEAMS \u2013 and Tutum Medical \u2013 were born. BEAMS works by picking up and identifying tonal noises emitted by alarms, routing alerts to a central monitoring system through its own Wi-Fi mesh network \u2013 removing the need to interface with existing hospital infrastructure.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only can it do this in an environment that might have a radio or TV on,\u201d maintains Paul, \u201cit can also identify what the equipment is doing. It could be a ventilator\u2019s high priority alarm, and BEAMS can provide this detailed data. And so, if a nurse has four or five alarms going off, such as a ventilator alarm and an end-of-infusion alarm for an IV drip, they are able to prioritise which one to address first.\u201d<\/p>\n Following a clinical trial, designed to make it possible to compare alarm response times before and after the installation of BEAMS, the system was found to produce an 84 per cent reduction in the maximum alarm response time, and a 74 per cent average alarm response time. The system was subsequently installed into 70 single-occupancy rooms, and it has fast become a vital fixture for the Matron, Joanne Reid-Roberts.<\/p>\n Joanne tells Hospital Times that she \u201ccouldn\u2019t imagine being on the wards without it\u201d. She credits BEAMS with inducing a \u201ccalmer, and more relaxed atmosphere\u201d on the wing, and helping to address the harmful consequences of alarm fatigue.<\/p>\n Studies have shown that in paediatric wards, up to 99 per cent of clinical alarms are either false or clinically insignificant (such as a battery needing to be changed) and do not warrant clinical intervention. Research also shows the consequences of this dynamic \u2013 alarm fatigue \u2013 which arises when alarms are so numerous (and often inconsequential) that they blend into the background and are missed.<\/p>\n BEAMS addresses alarm fatigue by helping to reduce the number of alarms sounding at any one time, relaying alarm information in a details spoken notification and making it more likely that any one will be picked up. The statistics appear to back this up; alarm response times at Sheffield Children\u2019s have been cut by an average of 90 per cent, down to just 40 seconds.<\/p>\n “We wouldn’t be able to function without it.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n These efficiency savings add up, bringing benefits to patient safety. \u201cIf a patient is on intravenous antibiotics,\u201d Joanne illustrates, \u201cBEAMS alerts us to say that the infusion has ended. If we missed that alert even for 30 minutes previously, what should have taken an hour would end up taking an hour and a half. It may sound small, but this can have a big impact on recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n The second generation of BEAMS, currently in use at Sheffield Children\u2019s and at Leeds Children\u2019s Hospital, communicates the precise nature and severity of alarms, enabling the efficient delegation of tasks and saving precious clinical resource. It can now be instantly established whether an alarm requires the intervention of clinical staff or a support worker, \u201cwhich has really improved the utilisation of our time,\u201d Joanne adds.<\/p>\n Another important aspect of BEAMS is its reporting mechanism, which allows ward managers to see week-to-week reports detailing the number, location and nature of alarms, and response times, allowing them to pinpoint exactly where improvements are needed. Joanne is under no illusions that such comprehensive data reporting strengthened the impact of the BEAMS pilot, allowing them to demonstrate proof of concept and gain buy-in from the trust\u2019s procurement and finance managers.<\/p>\n Importantly, and key for the workforce, Joanne is certain that BEAMS \u201chas taken away many aspects of stress for staff. We no longer have to walk corridors just in case there is an alarm going off. It\u2019s simple when you think about it, but we wouldn\u2019t be able to function without it.\u201d<\/p>\n Having a loved one in hospital can be a troubling and anxious experience for anybody, not least when the patient is a child. In paediatrics, mere seconds can prove the difference between life and death \u2013 under certain conditions, children can reach an emergency condition faster than adults. This is often the case with respiratory conditions, where the smaller relative size of children\u2019s airways can lead to greater difficulty with breathing than in adults.<\/p>\n While BEAMS has been successful in reducing average alarm response times, feedback from patients, parents and carers at Sheffield Children\u2019s shows the reassuring effect it can also have. \u201cIt gives parents peace of mind,\u201d Joanne relates. \u201cIt used to be normal that parents complained that alarms weren\u2019t being addressed in a timely manner but that almost never happens anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n She finds that most parents do not like to press the nurse call alarm for fear of wasting their time, yet are also fearful of what might happen if they are not at their child\u2019s bedside. But, \u201cBEAMS gives parents the confidence to know that the nurses will respond to their child\u2019s needs if they are not there, and patients feel reassured because they know that somebody is coming,\u201d a factor that can be important for recovery, explains Joanne.<\/p>\n Joanne was full of praise for the manner in which Tutum Medical supported Sheffield Children\u2019s throughout the trialling of BEAMS, recalling how easy it was to contact the company, and the fact that \u201cthey listened to our feedback and changed the product\u201d according to need.<\/p>\n Why has BEAMS mostly been taken up in paediatric settings thus far? \u201cIt just so happened to be Sheffield Children\u2019s who first wanted to trial BEAMS,\u201d Paul says, \u201cand Leeds like to look at what other children\u2019s hospitals are doing.\u201d Looking to the future, however, Paul hopes to see BEAMS deployed in other, non-paediatric settings (citing its particular utility for respiratory wards), and trials are indeed underway at a number of hospitals in England. According to Joanne, \u201cthere is no reason why BEAMS couldn\u2019t go into adult services, as they will experience the same issues as us and will probably have less staff than we do.\u201d<\/p>\n At Sheffield Children\u2019s at least, the results are in; BEAMS is one of the tools that helps healthcare staff to provide the best possible care for their patients.<\/p>\n
\nWhy BEAMS?<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/integratedcarejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/4-1-300x200.jpg\")
<\/a>
\nFewer alarms, safer patients<\/h3>\n
\nPeace of mind for patients and carers<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/integratedcarejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Jo-and-Paul-at-Sheffield-Childrens-Hospital-300x200.jpg\")
<\/a>
\nJust the beginning for BEAMS<\/h3>\n
\n