New Point of Care Ultrasound
Help us fund this life-saving piece of equipment for the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital.
Help us make sure children get the vital support they need as soon as possible.
A new Point of Care Ultrasound
In a typical week in the Emergency Department (ED) at The Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, staff can treat around 700 children.
With symptoms ranging from allergic reactions to broken bones, upset tummies to serious medical emergencies, the staff within the department are experts at being able to respond quickly to whatever they are faced with.
But while they may have the knowledge and experience to help thousands of children every year, they need the best equipment to be able to support their work and help diagnose and treat their young patients as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Quick diagnosis and treatment
We are raising funds for a brand-new Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) machine for the children’s ED at The Alex.
For staff working at the sharp end of children’s healthcare, being able to quickly and accurately assess a child’s condition is incredibly important. Saving valuable minutes with a diagnosis can make all the difference when it comes to the correct treatment and potential outcomes.
Which is why this clever bit of kit is so important.
Ultrasound scanning has been used for many years by specialists such as cardiologists, radiologists and obstetricians. It’s a non-invasive scan that uses sound waves to create images of internal organs, tissues, muscles and blood vessels along with the heart.
The POCUS uses this same technology as a normal ultrasound but instead of the patient having to go to where the machine is located, it brings it to the patient’s bedside.
Saving children’s lives
One-year-old Lucy arrived in the Emergency Department at The Alex unable to breathe. She needed to be diagnosed immediately so she could get life-saving treatment.
Having a Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) right in the resuscitation room means the medical team could quickly scan Lucy, identify life-threatening fluid around her heart and provide the treatment that will save her life.
As you can see, not only does this clever bit of kit help to aid a speedy diagnosis, but it also reduces treatment time and helps reduce the anxiety a patient and their family feels during an already stressful situation.
We previously funded one of these machines for the department 12 years ago but whilst it has proved extraordinarily useful it’s now showing its age. It frequently breaks down; the probes used to capture images are cracked producing low quality images and pose an infection risk, and due to the age of the machine, replacement parts are no longer manufactured.
The impact on NHS staff
Dr Dan Yusef, Consultant Paediatrician in the ED and HDU at The Alex, submitted the application to Rockinghorse to replace this vital piece of kit.
He explains why it’s so important to the team, “Having this POCUS within the Emergency Department at the RACH makes a huge impact on the care that we can provide every single day.
“Being able to quickly and effectively diagnose a child in a serious or critical condition, means that we can get them the treatment they need as soon as possible. This not only helps them and their family but means that we can see more children and speed up waiting times within the department – a plus for so many.
“This machine really can make the difference between life and death, and it forms an absolutely vital part of our work here at the hospital.”
At the forefront of care
The POCUS really does save lives.
Recently a three-month-old baby was transferred to the children’s ED in Brighton from another hospital to get a specialist paediatric surgical opinion on their concerns about a blockage in the baby’s stomach.
When they arrived, the baby was unwell and needed an urgent intravenous cannula in order to give the fluids and antibiotics they desperately needed. Owing to the baby’s size and previous attempts at the referring hospital, this was only possible with the use of ultrasound to make sure the cannula went into the right place first time.
Thanks to the use of the POCUS the cannula was successfully placed, and the medications were able to be administered.
The team at The Alex were then able to use the POCUS again at the patient’s bedside to look at their tummy and try and understand why they had a blockage.
They were able to see that the bowel had telescoped into itself, which needed to be urgently treated or the blood supply to the gut could be compromised, meaning more complicated surgery or even parts of bowel needing to be removed.
Being able to identify the problem right at the bedside saved valuable time and meant that the team could organise appropriate treatment without delay.
The baby’s bowel was successfully cured by the surgical team and the baby is now doing well.
Can you help?
If you can help us to replace this vital piece of equipment, you will be helping to ensure that more babies and children like this get the urgent care they need, right when they need it the most.
You’re support could mean:
£6 – could pay for the POCUS for one hour
£150 – could pay for the POCUS for one day
£1,000 – could pay for the POCUS for one week
We know times are tough, but anything you can spare will help.