P3.S361: Improving isolette configurability and function for a combined neonatal and pediatric transport team.

Purpose/Objectives: Current State
Wolfson Children’s Hospital (WCH) operates the Kids Kare Neonatal and Pediatric Transport Team. Transports are mostly pediatric with neonates accounting for 20% of the volume. The team has an aging ambulance and isolette fleet in need of replacement. This process improvement will focus on the isolettes.
The transport isolettes are self-contained devices affixed to a dedicated stretcher. The attached medical equipment is not configurable to the individual patient and additional equipment, such as nitric or active cooling, are fastened to the stretcher or tank box of the isolette with ratchet straps. Equipment failures take the entire isolette out for repair and equipment updates require a complete isolette purchase with substantial capital investment. Additionally, the team must carry redundant monitoring and ventilation equipment to service both patient populations.

Design/Methods: Future State
WCH collaborated with Technimount System to design and develop a solution that would ensure the safe transport of the pediatric or neonatal patient with the required medical equipment properly secured for transport. This project had the following objectives:
1. Convert the pediatric ambulance stretcher to an isolette system quickly and easily, without the use of any tools.

2. The isolette system needed to include a securement point for the incubator as well as mounting points to secure all the medical equipment needed for the transport of the neonate. Medical devices are shared between the pediatric and neonatal populations and must be installed to the isolette system quickly to reduce the transition time between configurations.

3. The system must hold all or a combination of the incubator, portable monitor, ventilator, infusion pumps, active cooling, and nitric system.

4. All mounting and securement devices must meet SAE J3043 and AMD 028 requirements.

Results: Implementation

The Xtension Pro Neonatal was designed to secure an incubator and multiple medical devices to a Stryker Power Pro 2 for ground transport. It responds to the operational needs of specialty teams by enabling interchangeability between configurations and medical devices ensuring the best patient care.

Technimount completed the prototype testing in December of 2023. Fit and function evaluation was performed in February of 2024. WCH will take delivery of the first units April 2024. The final phase of this project will focus on ambulance design to accommodate storage of the Xtension Pro Neonatal system.

Conclusion/Discussion: Ongoing Evaluation
WCH anticipates this system will meet or exceed the objectives outlined above. Additional key performance indicators:
• Reduce operational cost by shrinking the number of redundant pieces of equipment.
• Reduce out-of-service time for our isolettes.
• Reduce ambulance build cost by eliminating additional stretchers and utilizing smaller, economically chassis.