The West Midlands Academic Health Science Network (WMAHSN) are helping launch a new healthcare innovation, which will help those recovering from lung surgery or suffering from a collapsed lung.
The new advancement, called Thopaz+, comes in the form of a “portable, digital chest drainage and monitoring system” which enables the patient to be managed and monitored via digital readings – ultimately supporting recovery and reducing hospital time.
The technology has been developed by NHS England and NHS Improvement’s Accelerated Access Collaborative and via the MedTech Funding Mandate Policy.
Dr Joseph Robinson, WMAHSN Innovation Project Manager and AHSN National Lead for Thopaz+, said: “Thopaz+ is a fantastic healthcare innovation that we are pleased to be supporting as part of the MedTech Funding Mandate Policy.
“Being digital and portable, the device aids clinical decision making with objective data, and it has also been demonstrated as cost-saving by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. It will bring numerous benefits to both NHS staff and patients, and we hope to support equitable patient access across the West Midlands and nationally.”
Whilst recovering from lung surgery or when experiencing a collapsed lung, patients can often be fitted with a chest drain to remove any air or fluid in the chest cavity. This type of treatment requires an underwater seal chamber and subjective methods to monitor patient progress.
Thopaz+ however, expedites the current industry-standard process by digitally displaying readings such as the patient’s rate of air leak and fluid drainage, in turn allowing clinicians to make decisions for the individual – subsequently improving patient safety and providing a more cost-effective solution.
The device is also portable, as aforementioned, meaning patients can be more mobile during their recovery, improving their quality of life and aiding the recovery itself.
More information about this new innovation and how WMAHSN are supporting it is available here.
