New Parkland’s pneumatic tubes improve safety, efficiency
Patient care benefits from use of high-speed systems
The current Parkland Memorial Hospital and the new Parkland are connected by more than a pedestrian bridge. Tens of thousands of feet of high-tech pneumatic tubing will soon zip vital materials – from lab samples to medications – throughout the new hospital campus as well as to the current facility at lightning speed – as fast as 60 miles per hour.
Getting specimens to the lab quickly benefits patients because it means faster diagnosis and treatment for patients. It will take less than 30 seconds to send carriers from new Parkland across the 923-foot pedestrian bridge and into the Microbiology Lab on the ground floor of the current hospital. The system is so speedy that the transfer time from the farthest point at the new Parkland hospital (level 17) to the Microbiology Lab will be less than 2 minutes, and the express station at the lab will allow tubes to be received and sent every 7 seconds.
The new Parkland uses a pneumatic tube system by Swisslog, a system that’s computer-controlled and computer-monitored, to transport clinical material, including pharmaceuticals, lab samples and supplies using the latest in technology. At new Parkland, almost seven miles of tubing runs throughout the entire campus. The system can process as many as 8,800 transactions a day
Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology automatically tracks carriers that are in the system and gives users real-time verification that critical transactions arrive on time. Another feature of the pneumatic tube system is card-access security to control who is authorized to send and receive secure transactions.
“The card-access security feature is a wonderful addition. This allows pneumatic tubes to be placed closer to patients for increased efficiency and patient care,” said Kristina Jones, MBA, MPM, Senior Program Manager for New Parkland Construction. “The new system even automates empty carrier counts and ‘knows’ how to redistribute them to units that may need them.”
An express system made up of six lines is currently being installed in the ceiling of the pedestrian bridge that will connect the current hospital to the new one. This system allows multiple carriers to function at one time in the send and receiving lines of the system. The express system will connect onto the level 3 elevator transfer stations in the existing Parkland and also into the Microbiology Lab that will remain on the ground floor of current facility until the summer of 2016. The lab also will have express stations when it moves to the new logistics building in summer 2016.
"What this all means is that the system and its integrated technology will greatly improve efficiency, speed, capacity and accuracy, and these result in increased safety, comfort and care for our patients,” Jones said.
But medicines, lab samples and other clinical material aren’t the only items speeding through pneumatic tubes at new Parkland. A separate TransVac system will be used to remove soiled linen and trash from the facility. TransVac is the name of the company that provides automated trash, recycling and soiled linen collection and transport systems. TransVac tubes will transport trash and soiled linen from the new hospital to the logistics building just west of the new acute care facility. The soiled linen will then be taken to the current laundry department in the existing hospital.
“These TransVac tubes will remove clutter from the hospital in areas normally processed by manual resources for waste removal, including people and trash carts. Doing that immediately improves facility aesthetics and patient safety,” said Lou Saksen, Senior Vice President of New Parkland Construction.
Trash and soiled linen loading stations have been installed throughout the hospital to enhance operational efficiency and support the hospital's infection prevention initiatives.
Learn more about new Parkland hospital.
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