Good Design Saves Lives In The UK

I was intrigued by a story (forwarded by Jonathan Browne) about designers working with doctors in the UK to redesign resuscitation “crash” trolleys. These carts contain all of the equipment and drugs for handling a cardiopulmonary resuscitation. But there was a problem: The confusing layout of existing crash trolleys was increasing the risk to patients.

The article discusses three components of the newly designed crash trolley (that has already won two Medical Futures Innovation Awards):

• Put all items out in the open, so that the emergency teams can quickly find what they need; instead of having things buried in drawers.
• Organize kits based on the three major medical situations: clearing an airway, gaining intravenous access to give fluids, and restarting the heart with drugs and defibrillation equipment.
• Make the cart intutitve, so that it’s easy to use in a high-stress situation.

According Dr James Kinross from St Mary’s Hospital who was on the project::

It is laid out in a more intuitive way so that you have everything you need first at the top and subsequent things lower down

My take:This is another great example of how Design Solutions Can Improve Society. The combination of designers working with doctors delivered the key elements of a design solution:

• A focus on the true (end user) requirements
• Innovative approaches that break existing paradigms
• Efficient solutions that deal with real-world constraints

The bottom line: Healthcare is ripe with opportunities for design solutions that can save lives and cut costs