From Drive Thru to the OR: Headsets on the front-line

Ian Bolland spoke to Tom Downes, CEO of Quali Digital, about the use of wireless headsets his company manufactures can be used in a clinical setting.

Downes began by explaining that the headsets were originally deployed in fast food restaurants. Anyone who had visited one of the many outlets will recognise the devices being used by staff behind the counter.

This also managed to find its way into the retail sector before eventually being adopted by health services.

Downes explains: “It’s simply to make their operation more efficient, because otherwise people would spend the whole time waiting for something to happen that they could’ve easily resolved immediately if they could have spoken to the right person.”

The principle is the same in health as it is in hospitality and retail – though entering the health sector came after an enquiry from Philips following a problem with communication in CATH labs and BT labs.

“Because the amount of radiation that’s used in those processes, some of the staff are in the OR and some are through the glass in the monitoring room. All of whom need to be in close communication, but they are not physically able to hear each other properly because of the physical objects in the way.

“The same pattern develops. It’s a team of six, eight or 10 people who need accuracy, immediacy, efficiency who need to be able to speak. The headsets that we make for healthcare are really addressing the same underlying issue as everybody else’s – it’s just they are designed differently – as are retail as are Drive Thru for their particular market.”

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, Downes explained Quali has been approached by orthopaedic operation rooms who need the headsets to be worn under personal protective equipment. By protecting themselves from infection, wearing hoods can blight communication, therefore having a PPE friendly headset for communication becomes critical – and up to 30 users are able to use the headsets.

“They are now wearing this entirely closed device suit and for the rest of the team hearing them is a real challenge, because you really have to be almost standing beside them or looking at them face-to-face. Of course, that is unlikely if a surgeon is looking down at a knee during a procedure. There are several other people in the room involved. Most of them are either behind or away from them or away from the table.

“The headsets are made of microbial plastic, as you’d expect, they are within and inside the protective equipment. They’re put on and then the PPE is put on over the top of them, so the headset is not outside. When they take the protective equipment off the headset should be in the same state is was when they put it on, as it’s not outside and therefore exposed.”

To sum up the main benefits of using the devices, Downes cites motivation and peace of mind for the team using it.

“A surgeon would say that it is their ability to keep the team properly briefed and properly motivated during a procedure. I think the stress on staff by not being able to hear what’s going on and feeling they might compromise the procedure as a result, in itself, is unnecessary and this system will bridge that completely.”