Healthcare modular casework systems

The coronavirus has challenged hospitals like never before. Even as vaccines are deployed across the United States, hospitals are struggling with a winter surge of COVID-19 patients. In some of the hardest-hit areas, the availability of ICU beds is dropping precariously low. Hospitals have been forced to respond by filling up other wards with COVID-19 patients, even treating some in hallways. In a chaotic situation like this, medical modular storage can give hospitals the flexibility they so desperately need when storing critical equipment and gear.

Storage Is One of Many Challenges During the Coronavirus Pandemic

One of the many challenges healthcare workers face during this pandemic is where to put all the patients. Hospitals need to consider how they can quickly and effectively remodel their care spaces to make room for patients and allow healthcare staff to treat them as efficiently as possible.

Additionally, healthcare workers must have access to fresh PPE (personal protective equipment) kits to keep themselves and their patients safe. This means hospitals need to store more masks, face shields, gloves, and gowns than ever before.

Modular storage solutions can help address both of these situations.

What Is Medical Modular Storage?

Medical modular storage systems

Medical modular storage refers to various medical storage products, everything from casework to cabinetsdrawer storage systemsstorage lockers, and wire racks. What makes medical modular storage solutions ideal during the pandemic is that these pieces can easily be moved and reconfigured into different spaces.

For example, a modular nurse station taking up too much space in a COVID-19 ward can be moved and replaced with modular casework filled with PPE kits. Mobile wire racks can quickly be moved from room to room to help nurses and doctors treat patients more effectively.

Modular storage systems are a great alternative to built-in furniture, which is not easily moved around. In an environment where the situation is constantly changing, modular storage can change with the hospital’s needs.

The Other Benefits of Modular Storage Systems  

Aside from giving healthcare workers the flexibility they need to reconfigure treatment spaces, modular storage systems also offer various other benefits.

The Look of Built-In Furniture

Medical modular hospital casework cabinets

Hospitals and other medical offices want to create spaces that are both efficient and visually pleasing. Just because modular furniture can be moved doesn’t mean it has to look like it doesn’t belong. At Southwest Solutions Group®, we offer high-quality medical modular casework that can fit into nearly any type of environment, including medical rooms, offices, nursing stations, pharmacies, operating rooms, reception areas, research laboratories, and more.

Easy-to-Clean and Sterile Materials

Hospital employees need to keep every surface as clean as possible. While healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs) are a major concern at any medical facility, the possibility of spreading the coronavirus among healthcare workers and vulnerable patients cannot be overlooked.

Modular storage systems can make cleaning easier on hospital staff. Since these systems can be moved and disassembled, workers can clean every inch of the surface. Compare that to built-in shelves and casework, where it can be difficult, if not impossible, to scrub every surface.

Additionally, Southwest Solutions sells stainless steel medical storage options. Stainless steel is easy to clean and holds up to harsh chemicals, making it an ideal storage material for areas that need to remain sterile, like a hospital.

More Mobility Means Less Handling

Surgical kits and PPE kits are now a way of life at hospitals and medical facilities around the country. If a kit is torn or damaged, it must be re-sterilized, costing precious time and money. The less a kit is handled before use, the lower the risk of damage. Modular racks, including transport carts and temporary storage shelves, can help lower the number of people who handle the kits before use.

Easy to Assemble and Reassemble

Stainless steel medical modular casework

With coronavirus hospitalizations on the rise in many parts of the country, healthcare workers don’t have time to put together shelves and casework. Instead, they need to focus on caring for coronavirus patients who need constant attention. An underappreciated benefit of modular storage is that it is easy and often quick to assemble and reassemble. This allows healthcare workers to quickly take apart modular furniture that is needed elsewhere and assemble it in a better spot without sacrificing time spent caring for patients.

The Need for Modular Storage Solutions Will Continue

Medical modular storage may seem like it was tailor-made for the needs of the coronavirus pandemic, but the truth is that hospitals will need to maintain their flexibility far into the future. Medical researchers are sounding the alarm that changes to the environment and the growing globalization of our world could result in a steady increase in pandemics in the future. Hospitals and other medical facilities will always be on the front lines of these outbreaks and must be ready to shift into high gear again and again.

Medical modular storage will help hospitals shift quickly to meet whatever unknown challenges await in the future.

Where to Find Modular Storage Solutions

Southwest Solutions is a leader in providing medical storage products. We have been selling storage solutions for over 50 years, and we offer a range of modular storage for medical offices and hospitals. Whether you need exam room modular casework, sterile modular wire storage, or something else, we can provide it. Contact us today for a quote.