East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Ergonomic and Safety Expertise

Description and aims
Ambulance crews everyday are faced with the challenge of getting patients in and out of vehicles quickly and safely, without putting themselves at risk. This project aimed to improve safety for healthcare workers and patients.
About East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
The East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) provides emergency and urgent care, patient transport, call handling and clinical triage services for 4.6 million people across the six counties of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland.
How the project is being undertaken
The East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust partnered Loughborough’s Healthcare Ergonomics and Patient Safety Research Unit (HESPU) to carry out a year-long study to ensure a well-informed strategy for future procurement.
Anna Jones worked closely on a Research Assistant Industrial Secondment (RAIS) with the Ambulance Service to evaluate the equipment of five manufacturers from Europe and America. In testing and evaluating the equipment they identified physical factors affecting its use such as linoleum flooring, high kerbs, narrow doorways and stairs.
These factors were incorporated into task simulations carried out in the HEPSU laboratory. Ambulance staff took part in usability trials both as participants and investigators in order to build their own expertise to conduct future trials.
Impacts and benefits
The trials revealed that the equipment currently in use did not receive the best results and the ambulance service has since purchased some of the recommended equipment.
‘By engaging with the East Midlands Ambulance Service and leading equipment manufacturers, we have been able to determine mobility equipment that is safe for the patient, their family members and the ambulance workers, and help inform product development. We gave manufacturers detailed results about their own products,
some of which they are incorporating into future equipment design.’
Dr Sue Hignett, Director of HEPSU
‘Being able to tap into Loughborough’s long-standing expertise in healthcare ergonomics has been invaluable. The project has enriched our knowledge of systematic trials, enabling us to procure the best equipment to meet the needs of our patients and our staff.’
Kathy Smith, Assistant Director of Corporate Services (Governance & Risk),
East Midlands Ambulance Services
For more information about the project
If you would like to hear more about this project, please contact Kathryn Burchell, Enterprise Office, Loughborough University
Email: k.d.burchell@lboro.ac.uk
Telephone: 01509 228493
University
Academic Lead
Dr Sue Hignett
Healthcare Ergonomics and Patient Safety Research Unit (HESPU)
Contact
01509 228493