Leicester Royal Infirmary

Leicester Royal Infirmary and MIW

In December 2019, the managers of Leicester University Hospitals NHS Trust made the decision to replace the outdated water cooler in Leicester Royal Infirmary’s Accident and Emergency Department with a model more suited to patient needs. They selected MIW Water Cooler Experts to manage the project.

The Brief

Leicester Royal Infirmary’s A&E department can be extremely busy. Caring for an average of 650 patients and their families a day in peak periods, all equipment held on site needs to be fast and reliable. For this project, MIW would be required to:
 

  • Advise the Leicester Royal Infirmary management team upon product specification, logistics and installation.
  • Identify and source a water dispenser that was WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme) approved to guarantee compliance with all water authority and UK Government health and safety guidelines.
  • Ensure that the new equipment was easy to use, wheelchair accessible, durable and capable of serving a high volume of users.
  • With a water cooler already in place, the MIW team would be required to carry out a site inspection to ascertain whether the existing location would be suitable for a new bottle refill station, or if further groundworks would be necessary.
  • Once a suitable unit had been identified, MIW would be responsible for installing it with minimum disruption to patients and staff.
  • Post-installation MIW would be required to provide ongoing product servicing, maintenance and sanitisation.

The Process

Throughout this project, the MIW team worked closely with both Project Managers at Leicester University Hospitals NHS Trust and managers within Leicester Royal Infirmary’s Accident and Emergency Department. The main priorities were to ensure that the right equipment was selected for patient needs and that as little disruption was caused onsite during installation.

Taking into account all of prerequisites cited by the hospital, MIW recommended the for the A&E department. As with all equipment supplied by MIW, the unit is WRAS approved. It has a strong stainless-steel body for durability. Sensor operated, it is both incredibly easy to use and hygienic. With (American’s with Disabilities Act) certification, it is guaranteed wheelchair accessible. And with a refill rate of 42 litres of chilled water per hour, it is capable of meeting the needs of the hospital’s patients and staff at the busiest of times. Importantly, it also takes up very little space, so causes no obstruction in a place where wheelchairs and beds need to be continuously manoeuvred.  Lastly, an inbuilt bottle counter allows both the public and staff to see just how much the unit is being used.

Once appropriate equipment had been identified, MIW worked with the Leicester Royal Infirmary to arrange a suitable installation time, aiming to avoid the busiest periods.

The Project Continues

The bottle filler installation at Leicester Royal Infirmary’s A&E department took place smoothly, on schedule and on budget, with no unforeseen complications.

MIW will be responsible for the servicing, maintenance and sanitisation of the Leicester Royal Infirmary bottle filler, on an ongoing basis.

MIW Water Cooler Experts continues to work with Leicester University Hospitals NHS Trust on projects based in other departments and hospitals within the Trust’s management.

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