Institution news
Dear Member,
Earlier this year, IMechE brought together volunteer engineers from across the Institution to form a COVID-19 Taskforce. The idea, to bring our engineering expertise, from our special interest groups and regions, to bear on the difficulties created by the pandemic.
Our Institution headquarters in London has partly reopened following several months of being closed due to the ongoing pandemic. As we approach winter, as expected, the infection rate is beginning to increase, and this has led to the closing of the Library and Member’s Hub for a second time this year. This is a reminder that the virus will be with us for some time and we need to plan for how to deal with it in the longer term. Indeed, engineers will be vital in helping to make our buildings and transport systems more resilient to disease transmission.
IMechE, through our COVID-19 Taskforce is tackling this problem; we recently responded to a consultation on the topic of making hospitals fit for the post-COVID era. In the UK, before the pandemic, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced that the Government would build 40 new hospitals, which will now have to consider the effects of coronavirus and the impact of future pandemics in their design.
The working group’s response to this consultation highlighted the need for improved ventilation and air filtration, making wards as flexible as possible so that they can respond quickly to different scenarios, as well as remote patient monitoring to reduce the risk to staff.
Some of the ideas in our response had already been described in greater detail in two recent reports produced by our Biomedical Engineering Division, these are available for download from our website. In 'Improving Technology Adoption', the Institution recommended technological solutions to make health systems more efficient. This includes more remote monitoring of patient care, but also the creation of advanced GP surgeries where people could get diagnosed quickly for disease like cancer without the need for a referral to a hospital.
The second report focused on 'Elevating the Engineering Workforce'. Engineers are already play a vital role in healthcare systems, but their expertise could be used more effectively through the creation of Chief Healthcare Engineer in every hospital. By elevating the status of engineers in hospital setting this would ‘not only promote best practice in the procurement, maintenance and use of medical equipment but increase the opportunity for cost savings across the healthcare service.’
Our membership will continue to provide society with innovative ideas, as well as implementing practical solutions. This begins at home where we are considering trialling thermal screening and ventilation technologies that will make One Birdcage Walk safer for our staff, members, and visitors.