Page 9 - ICS Vall d'Hebron University Hospital 2011

ICS · Vall d’Hebron University Hospital 2011 9
Healthcare Innovation and Improvements
New Paediatric Intensive Care Unit
In July 2011, the new Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (UCIP)
was opened. Vall d’Hebron University Hospital opened the
first UCIP in Spain in 1968, with six beds and an area of less
than 50 m 2. The UCIP was expanded twice. In summer 2011,
it had an area of 483 m2 and 15 beds distributed in three pri-
vate rooms and 12 care stations.
The new UCIP boasts changes in all areas. Even its location
was changed from the ground floor to a semi-basement
floor in the Maternal/Child Building, which means it is
currently on the same floor as Paediatric Emergency Servi-
ces, the operating theatres, the Post-operative and Reani-
mation Area and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
From a structural perspective, the area of the UCIP was
doubled to a total of 1,170 m 2. The purpose of the change
was not to substantially increase the number of care sta-
tions, which went from 15 to 16 (may be extended to 20), but
to adapt the structure and organization of the unit by
taking into consideration the needs of children and their
families.
• The ratio of private beds to care stations was inverted:
currently there are only four care stations and 12 spacious
20 m2 private rooms, four of which can be converted into
double rooms if necessary.
• The rooms have a television set and an MP3 connection.
• Visiting hours have been done away with for parents, who
can now visit their child at any time and can even spend
the night in the child’s room.
• A parent lounge was created with a refrigerator, a micro-
wave oven, a shower and lockers so parents can change
clothes.
The change is not only structural, but will ensure that the
UCIP is the most technologically advanced in Europe. The
new technology includes the following:
• Centralized monitoring at both nursing stations and in
medical work rooms.
• Each bed has a camera on it for viewing patients on cen-
tralized monitors at both nursing stations.
• A continuous programmable infusion pump centre.
• Each care station has a computer and a technology sta-
tion.
• For the prevention of nosocomial infections, all the rooms
are negative pressure rooms.
• Haemodialysis can be performed at all the care stations.
Every detail was taken into consideration in the design: the
rooms have strong adjustable lights that make it possible
for certain surgical procedures to be performed in the
room. There are no cables on the floor, since all devices
hang from the ceiling and the equipment stands out as lit-
tle as possible for easy cleaning.
The new UCIP is prepared to handle the increased comple-
xity and technological needs of admitted patients, given
that Vall d’Hebron Hospital is one of the five Spanish hos-
pitals where heart transplants are performed, and one of
the three that perform liver and lung transplants. Ventricu-
lar assist devices and extracorporeal membrane oxygena-
tion (ECMO) are used to replace the function of the heart
and lungs.
In 2011, 613 children were admitted to the UCIP. Nine liver
transplants, three lung transplants and seven heart trans-
plants were performed, six ventricular assist devices were
implanted, and 26 patients required ECMO. Despite the
high level of complexity of the patients treated, the morta-
lity rate was only 4.37%.
Forty-three years after it was inaugurated, the UCIP has
undergone a structural, technological and functional chan-
ge to adapt it to medical advances and the needs of chil-
dren and their families.
New Games Rooms on General and Specialist
Paediatric Floors
In 2011, the games rooms on the two general and specialist
paediatric floors were remodelled. They are located on the
fifth and eighth floors of the Maternal/Child Building. The
decor was changed to make it neater and more fun, the fur-
niture was replaced and different games areas were crea-
ted. This changes were made possible thanks to donations
from the Ànima Foundation.