The Operating Theatre Journal April 2022

Six-use day cuffs
Reusable cuffs
We’re cuffing mad!
TOURNIQUET CUFFS IN STOCK NOW!
We aim to stay ahead and keep our popular product lines
at full stock ready to be delivered to you quickly. We stock
3 types of tourniquet cuffs; Six-use Day, Single-use Sterile
and Reusable.
Single-use Sterile cuffs
+44 (0)1943 878647 | sales@aneticaid.com | aneticaid.com
University gets government backing for multi-million-pound
healthcare skills hub refurb
Birmingham City University has secured new
government funding as part of a more than
£3.5million redevelopment of a skills and
training hub for healthcare workers of the
future.
The University is investing £1.57 million of
its own money on the refurbishment and
has landed a further £2million from the
government’s Office for Students following a
successful capital funding bid last year.
The money will be spent on a revamping the
skills hub at the University’s Seacole Building
at its Edgbaston-based City South Campus,
which is used to provide hands-on, practical
training for those studying on health courses
such as nursing and midwifery.
It will provide even better facilities for
students by introducing a high-tech and highspec
suite of resources fitted with state-ofthe-art
equipment including 5G technology
to allow for advice, diagnoses and procedures
to be supported by real-time mobile network
connections.
Professor Ian Blair, Pro-Vice Chancellor of the
University and Executive Dean of its Faculty of
Health, Education and Life Sciences, believes
the refurbishment will strengthen its position
as a leading healthcare education provider and
considers the investment from the Office for
Students an endorsement of the University’s
commitment to developing a workforce wellequipped
to meet future needs.
Professor Blair said:
We’re really pleased to have secured funding
from the Office for Students, and I think the
success of our bid is testament to the strong
case we made to meet employer demands
around the recruitment and retention
of nurses, midwives and allied health
professionals.
We work closely with hospitals and trusts
to ensure training of new recruits is fully
up to date with the latest standards and
is tailored towards employers’ particular
needs. But as well as meeting future
workforce requirements, we’re also focused
on knowledge enhancement and upskilling
of current staff members through continuing
professional development.
Professor Ian Blair, Executive Dean
Teaching facilities already housed within the
Seacole Building include a simulated operating
theatre and hospital wards, a fully equipped
birthing room, a simulated home environment
and a fully functional radiography suite and 3D
imaging diagnostic suite.
The £3.57million pound upgrade will see
the refurbishment of the building’s existing
skills hub, where students receive handson
healthcare training to complement their
learning. Two new hubs will also be created,
alongside a new resuscitation room, the
redesign and renovation of a theatre suite,
and installation of new specialist simulation
equipment for midwifery, nursing and
healthcare teaching.
In addition to the physical improvements being
made, the building’s digital infrastructure will
be revamped – with increased capacity for 5G
connectivity – reflecting the increasing use of
virtual reality, simulation and other method
of remote communication technologies in
healthcare treatment and teaching.
The installation of the 5G capabilities will be
supported by researchers in the University’s
Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the
Built Environment, who specialise in the
study and promotion of the latest advances in
telecommunications.
Professor Blair added:
“The use of digital technologies forms a
key part of the NHS long-term plan and are
increasingly prevalent in modern healthcare.
“The pandemic has accelerated their use
with things like virtual consultations and
intelligent, remote care becoming more
commonplace now. But teaching has also been
impacted and major bodies like the Nursing
and Midwifery Council are now incorporating
additional simulated learning hours into their
training standards.
“We’ve likewise been trialling virtual learning
and with this latest investment we’ll be
able to expand our provision and continue
to develop new, innovative ways of learning
through simulation.”
The redevelopment work at the Seacole
Building is starting this month with the newly
revamped facilities open for use in May.
Find out more 02921 680068 • e-mail admin@lawrand.com Issue 379 April 2022 7