Reducing HAIs with Hallway Supply Cabinets
Hospital-acquired infections are a huge risk for patients, but they are unfortunately difficult to control. In addition to general standards, each risk group or procedure may require very specific measures to prevent infection. Hospitals go to great lengths to protect their patients, but specialized storage solutions can help make their jobs easier and patients safer. Jim Deller, our healthcare storage specialist, recently helped a hospital’s Progressive Care Unit (PCU) achieve this goal with pull-out patient room hallway supply cabinets. The solution is extremely effective and surprisingly simple. It also provided the additional benefit of organization and space savings.
Quick & Safe Patient Supply Stock Storage
Before the supply cabinets, the hospital stored patient supplies and medical items in a central storage room. Nurses spent a lot of time going to and from the supply room to patient rooms. This may not seem like a big deal, but nurses know better. The extra time spent traveling and looking for supplies quickly adds up and takes time away from valuable patient care. Additionally, nurses and supply technicians have to enter and leave the patient rooms for every transaction. This increases the risk of patient infection, especially for patients recovering from operative and other invasive procedures.
The PCU installed 64 pull-out supply cabinets, one for each patient room over two floors. The units store the specific medical supplies each patient needs. From the hallway, the supply chain staff stocks the units on a daily basis and caregivers access the supplies from inside the patient room. Since supplies are brought to the point of use and only loaded from the hallway side, the risk of infection is reduced. No one except the patient’s caregivers has to enter the room and potentially spread bacteria. Each side of the cabinet has a touchpad lock to prevent unauthorized access.
Because Deller worked closely with the hospital designer and architects, they were able to design a solution that meets every need. We have a variety of standard solutions just like this one, or we can help you design a custom system.
Contact Us for Pull-Out Patient Room Hallway Supply Cabinets
Southwest Solutions Group® provides pull-out patient room hallway supply cabinets to all types of hospitals and healthcare facilities. We will also provide you with a free consultation to determine your exact needs and specifications before the design process begins. For more information or to speak with a healthcare specialist, call us at 1-800-803-1083 or send us a message.
