Mr Manoj Purohit, Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon, shows patient Lorna Matthews the benefits of the new Thopaz digital chest drains
Patients treated at the Lancashire Cardiac Centre are benefiting from some new state-of-the-art equipment.
The centre, based at Blackpool Victoria Hospital, has recently purchased 10 Thopaz digital chest drains thanks to a donation from Blue Skies Hospitals Fund, the official charity of Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Mr Manoj Purohit, a Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at the centre, said there were a number of benefits to the new machines, which drain fluid from a patient’s chest, after surgery.
He said: “These new pieces of equipment set new standards in thoracic drainage therapy.
“In the past chest drains were connected to underwater sealed bottles that were plugged into areas such as a wall and the patient could not move away from the area they were in. Even going to a toilet proved to be a problem.
“But these new digital chest drain machines are small, compact and portable and patients have the freedom to move around without being attached to wall suction.
“The mobility is important as it makes the lung to expand and therefore decreases the amount of leakage from the lungs. At the same time mobility prevents other complications like deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pneumonia.
“There is also a digital display on the new machines which shows actual and long-term air leak data to allow for timely and objective decisions in chest drain management.
“The digital display also provides data in real time as well as a 24-72 hour graph of the air leak for easy tracking of therapy progress.
“This can be printed and kept as record in patient notes as evidence of decision making.’’
Ann Hedley, Interim Head of Fundraising at the Trust, said: “Blue Skies is pleased to support such equipment which makes the patient experience so much more bearable.
“Being able to undergo treatment and remain mobile has a truly positive mental effect. Having more effective and efficient innovative equipment also frees up our staff to attend to other patients and relieves some of the stress of their day.’’
A video of Mr Purohit explaining the benefits of the drains can be seen below: