Fun and familiar prints with Babar the Elephant

In the new accident and emergency unit at Männedorf Hospital – boasting the very latest in medical and building services engineering – all curtains have been replaced by Silentia screens, both on health grounds and due to their superior quality.

At Männedorf Hospital, Silentia folding screens ensure good hygiene and help patients feel at home. The personal touch they provide is important – particularly for younger patients.

“We are very pleased that we opted for this system. The open design, the many options it affords and the hygiene aspect were what clinched it. We were also able to try out the system beforehand here on site,” says Peter Burkard, Head of Accident and Emergency Treatment at Männedorf Hospital on the shores of Lake Zürich.

The unit has two screens with Babar the Elephant, tailor-made by Silentia. It helps create a childfriendly ambiance.

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Optimum utilisation of space

Lean management has been introduced throughout the hospital to ensure efficient design of all processes, the latter being defined very much in terms of patient needs and quality of care. To implement this concept, the entire treatment wing was rebuilt from scratch. The accident and emergency unit was opened in July 2015.

“Our aim was optimum utilisation of space. For rooms with two beds and for the fast-track area, we were looking for a particularly flexible hygienic solution that would be easy to clean. We took this decision together with the intensive care unit, the site management and our hygiene expert.

High expectations met

Silentia screens have met everyone’s high expectations. The accident and emergency unit has had the Silentia screens in place for a year, and the experience has been uniformly good. For Peter Burkhard, they have four major benefits:he intensive care unit, the site management and our hygiene expert.

Optimum hygiene
Cleaning of the screens is quick and easy. This benefit in terms of hygiene is in fact of particular significance for Männedorf Hospital, as the screens can be disinfected as and when needed at any time.

Flexibility
Flexibility is an obvious benefit, as the screens can also be positioned across corners. This is particularly welcome when greater capacity is needed. If a patient has to wait in the corridor on a trolley they are afforded some privacy. In addition, two small areas can be quickly turned into one big one, or vice-versa, at any time.

More space when time is of essence
If the screen is not in use, it is folded up and takes up little space. Another important feature is that the screens can be very quickly pushed to one side in an emergency, if more room is needed around the beds.

Patient privacy
The folding screens are also used for rooms with single beds, allowing the door to stay open so that the patient can be monitored, at the same time as ensuring the patient gets the privacy they need. Staff can also see the medical equipment and hear if the patient needs help.

Excellent advice from Silentia/Med-Innova

“We received excellent expert advice and service from the planning and design phase through to installation. Med-Innova has, with their many years of experience, helped us find the best possible solution for our needs, keeping us on the right track in terms of technical feasibility, copyright and practicalities,” says Peter Burkard.

Babar illustrations keeps children calm

The material and creative potential also played a decisive role. For the treatment of children, the unit thus has two screens with illustrations of Babar the Elephant, tailor-made by Silentia. Although this is not a specialised paediatric clinic, it is a priority for the unit that children should feel at home.

“The bed end screens with the Babar motifs help us very quickly create a child-friendly ambiance in all areas, making it easier to engage in conversation with the child so as to take their mind off any pain and anxiety they are feeling and keep them calm.”

Silentia has printed images and motifs on the screens. The two different motifs of Babar the Elephant were the choice of two female doctors. Ms Hagnauer of Con color Farbkonzept assisted with the copyright and ensuring the correct resolution.