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Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham N.T. Voice and Data Solutions was invited by Dr Michael Vloeberghs, Neurosurgeon at the Queens Medical Centre at The University Hospital, Nottingham to investigate a particular communications problem. When Dr Vloeberghs was operating on the patient, tissue was removed for investigation in the Pathology Laboratory, three floors down from the operating theatres. The sheer size of Queens Medical Centre, as one of the largest teaching hospitals in the U.K., compounded the problem. It was not as if you could just go next door and have a look through a microscope yourself. So when the tissue had to be analysed, the surgeon could not obtain the results himself because he was operating in a total sterile environment with operating clothing and gear. Neither was it possible to take the telephone handset unless these could be also sterilised, which was virtually impossible. Therefore, the surgeon could only obtain the results of the microscopic analysis from Pathology verbally by the Theatre Nurse. Instructions followed suit and possibly further investigation was recommended on this verbal analysis. The question was raised that could this methods be improved upon to provide the surgeon with visible data of what the Pathologist could see under the laboratory microscope, and also if there could be a dialogue with the Pathologist to discuss the slides. When N.T. Voice and Data investigated the problem, the Company came up with a possible innovative solution. It considered the use of existing high quality video meeting codec equipment and an interconnection methodology with the microscope at Pathology. Furthermore, N.T. Voice and Data recommended that there should be face-to-face contact with the Pathologist for discussions surrounding the tissue under investigation and to further instructions by the surgeon, should this be deemed necessary. We recommended that this would be achieved by the use of cameras placed on top of the codec system with the facility to switch between the microscope and Pathologist. However, the recommendations were only theoretical and it was never tried before, especially because of the sheer miles of cable lengths involved between the operating theatres and Pathology. This solution would break all technical specification and design recommendations. A simple solution would be to interconnect through the BT Telecom Exchange through 3 or 6 x 2 ISDN lines (to guarantee band width) on both positions of the codec systems in the operating theatre and also Pathology. That would avoid long CAT 5 cables and breaking all boundaries as far as specifications were concerned. However, this was rejected because an ongoing cost equivalent to 3 x 2 x 2 = 12 or 24 exchange lines would be used at any on time during an operation. Take that cost on a 24/7 basis and that would be horrendous, especially to the cost conscious N.H.S. We had to come up with a more advanced solution that would provide all the above but also would not incur ongoing costs. Back to miles of CAT 5 cables but how to interconnect? We came up with a solution that is still hidden in an unknown unobtrusive secret cabinet at Queens on one of the floors. We call it ‘simply a bridge' that connects all the very long CAT 5 cables and runs from the operating theatre codec to the codec system in Pathology. The solution is that it actually fools the technology into thinking that it interconnects with B.T ISDN lines, but in reality, it connects to itself with its sister codec, happily passing data to each other 24/7, at no extra cost to the N.H.S. Furthermore, and not least, the bridge has an amplifying effect compensating for the loss in data carrying strength due to many miles long one-piece cable lengths operating between Theatre and Pathology. The result? Perfect picture quality for the surgeon to see what the pathologist sees in the microscope without the surgeon moving from his operating position. Verbal dialogue with the pathologist, and as a bonus this can be beamed into any lecture room in the world. Yes, because our bridge us functioning at present as an internal bridge but at the same time was designed as an external bridge also, meaning this can be interconnected and beamed to any video conferencing meeting unit and lecture theatres of Medical Centres worldwide. We have made the impossible possible and many are still scratching their heads how we could possibly have resolved all these technical obstacles. Breaking all the rules, but achieving such a ground breaking, innovative solution. The result of this solution has brought us many orders and put us in front in a number of top medical and teaching establishments. We obtained additional orders from the Derby Royal Infirmary, and Nottingham City Hospital, followed by additional installations at Queens Medical Centre. Many of these sites are interlinked for Video conferencing for teaching and consultation purposes between directors, medical and teaching staff, greatly improving efficiencies and patient care. |
