Inflatable 'BathMat' a boost for ICU staff

Clinical trials of an innovative inflatable pillow designed to make moving intensive care unit patients safer, faster and less labour-intensive for NHS staff have begun in Bath.

- 

Co-developed by researchers at the University of Bath and clinicians at the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust (RUH), and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Inflatable Prone Repositioning Device - known as the 'BathMat' - is a flat balloon-like pillow that can be inflated in sections, and is the first medical device of its kind.

The device was conceived to tackle a major challenge in intensive care units (ICUs): repositioning sedated, ventilated patients in the prone (face-down) position - often among the most critically ill - to avoid pressure injuries and improve oxygenation.

Placed under a sedated patient it can gently lift their chest and hips, helping ward staff safely and quickly reposition their head and arms.

The assistance provided by the BathMat has the added benefit of reducing the number of staff needed to move a patient from five to two.