Funding of €60,000 awarded to 10 hospital staff initiatives

FUNDING of €60,000 has been awarded to 10 staff-generated, innovative initiatives at Tallaght University Hospital.

The Adelaide Health Foundation (AHF), working in partnership with Innovate Health at the local hospital, this week announced the funding – which will support healthcare innovations and improvements.

By the end of 2022, a record number of applications were submitted by staff members for the long-running New Initiatives Scheme at Tallaght University Hospital (TUH).

Among the 10 projects selected to receive funding is virtual reality for Emergency Department education.

This project will use the latest Oxford Medical Stimulation software and virtual reality headsets to train emergency doctors, who work in high-stress environments which require rapid information processing and time critical decision making.

The virtual reality training will help doctors rehearse how they might handle a serious medical emergency, so they are even better prepared to provide care for a critically ill patient in the resuscitation room.

Another project receiving funding is the creation of an accessible, jargon-free infographic in the waiting area of the new ICU.

This infographic will help families familiarise themselves with the ICU equipment being used at a loved one’s bedside.

Staff also suggested a solution for the lack of natural light in some of the Post Anaesthesia Care Unit bed spaces.

No natural light can make orientation to time difficult for patients coming out of surgery.

This project will install a ‘virtual skylight’ to aid day and night differentiation, reducing the risk of patients developing delirium.

Funding will also support a study to improve treatment for patients with COPD, the purchase of a new bedside ultrasound for the lungs and respiratory muscle training in Critical Care.

The development of an acute respiratory hub in ED is also among funded projects.

This hub for people presenting with acute breathing difficulties, will see patients cared for in a dedicated area where they will be treated with special air nebulisation.

A special video to help patients deal with the psychological consequences of long Covid is also receiving funds, alongside a new study to help improve treatment for stroke patients.

Lastly, funding will support the purchase of two new stimulation devices to help patients with difficulties swallowing.

Welcoming funding, Dr Natalie Cole, Head of Innovation at TUH said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank the AHF for their very generous and much appreciated financial support.

“These important new projects will further empower the hospital to create the conditions where we can become even more efficient at introducing healthcare innovations and improvements.”

The Adelaide Health Foundation is a voluntary, charitable organisation, which supports projects that improve services for patients and investment in nursing, medical education and healthcare research.

Adelaide Health Foundation Chief Executive Niamh Gavin said: “To date our New Initiatives Scheme at TUH has been extremely successful and we were delighted with the quality and breadth of applications in this round.

“We are confident that all of these projects which have just received funding, will benefit patients very quickly.

“We look forward to collaborating with Natalie and her team on the 2023 scheme.”