Patient Information Cards
Universally recognised in helping to manage clinical risk whilst disseminating medical advice.
These have proved a superb asset to the department. The cards present clear advice and are popular with staff, patients and relatives.
Primarily supplied to Emergency departments, these information cards are given to patients prior to discharge and contain written, illustrated instructions explaining how to care for their injury at home. All the clinical information is approved by senior clinicians and the cards also contain the hospital address and contact numbers. Normally, there is also room for a current health message from the Department of Health and an advert from the sponsor that allows the cards to be supplied FREE OF CHARGE.
The range of injuries covered by the information cards in a department will be dependent upon what the senior clinician chooses to stock. A normal range consists of around 25 cards but can be as many as 50. The cards are colour coded to make recognition by staff easier. A racking system is provided in a convenient position for distribution by the medical staff with smaller racks and injury cards for specific areas such as the Plaster room, Paediatric area, Triage room, Eye and Physiotherapy department. We also produce Appointment cards and Welcome leaflets which are utilised by the reception desk.
The cards are normally produced to a size that folds down to A6 (pocket size for convenience) with up to 6 pages for information. Any specification can be accommodated to fit Trust Policy for patient information.
Replacement cards are regularly printed and delivered to the department to reduce the area required to store the cards. Every site will have a dedicated Regional Manager who visits the department regularly to maintain the racks and make re-orders where necessary. They will also work with the clinicians ensuring the information is updated and replaced as and when required.
Junior Doctors Handbook
BOE published its first Junior Doctors’ Handbook in February 1996 after working in collaboration with the Emergency consultants of the North Western Region. The goal was to provide a working manual that identified common clinical situations likely to be mismanaged in the absence of guidance. The manual was given to doctors prior to their six month Junior Doctor post In the Emergency department and provided them with an outline statement of acceptable practice.
After successfully publishing the first Junior Doctors’ Handbook of its kind, we shared this development with our other clients throughout the UK. We found a huge need for this type of manual, utilising our bespoke publishing skills to supply each Trust with a similar manual but each adapted to their own clinician’s requirements. The look, feel and size of the handbook has changed over the years as we have found more practical materials to produce it from. Our experienced graphic designers have evolved the style and format which enables the manual to be a clear, quick and concise reference book. Customer research has led us to our most practical design, ring bound and 12 cm x 21 cm in size, a convenient size for portability by the Junior Doctor during his tour of duty in the Emergency department. However, this is not restrictive with some Trusts opting for a smaller size whilst others have preferred to produce them to an A4 size format. All our Junior Doctors’ Handbooks are finished to the highest standard in state of the art material, shortly to include anti-microbial technology which reduces the risk of cross infection to 0.01%.
As the most experienced publishing company in this field we an accommodate any amount of information that is required for a handbook or, alternatively, we can provide a working framework of protocols from our vast resource library. This includes illustrations, flow-charts, pathways of treatment and much more, saving the clinician responsible for producing such a manual many valuable hours.
Nurses Clinical Handbook/Emergency Nurse Practitioner
BOE published its first Nurses' Clinical Handbook, more commonly known as the ENP Handbook, in August 1998. The aim was to produce a working manual that provided the operational policy and clinical guidelines for Emergency Nurse Practitioners.
These guidelines now enable ENPs to maximise their potential to provide an assessment, treatment, referral and discharge service to patients presenting to the Emergency department or Treatment Centre. The handbook defines the range of injuries and conditions which can be treated appropriately by the ENP as well as the ENP’s role and responsibilities. This allows for role expansion within clearly defined parameters, reinforced by appropriate education and practical experience.
As with the Junior Doctors’ Handbook, we shared this development with our other clients and again found our bespoke publishing skills being utilised to provide each Trust with a Nurses' Clinical Handbook modified for use in their own Emergency department or Treatment Centre. The ENP Handbooks have benefited from our experience in the development of the Junior Doctors’ Handbooks and share the same clarity of style and format ideal for speed of reference. The same practical design of a ring bound 12 cm x 21 cm handbook is also used, a convenient size to be carried by the ENP while on duty. A number of these handbooks have, however, been developed to a smaller size than this. All our ENP Handbooks are finished to the highest standard using state of the art material such as an anti-microbial paper which is proven to kill 99.9% of bacteria within 2 hours of contact thus reducing the risk of cross infection.
As the most experienced publishing company in this field we can accommodate any amount of information that is required for a handbook or, alternatively we can provide a working framework of protocols from our vast resource library. This includes illustrations, flow-charts, pathways of treatment and much more, saving the clinician responsible for producing such a manual many valuable hours.
The demand for Clinical Nurses' Handbooks is rising each year and to date we have printed over 5,000 of them. We currently have many being developed with various Trusts around the UK.
Training Aids
Nurse Competency Manuals
A more recent addition to our product range has been the competency record for qualified nurses. A small handbook, personal to each nurse in the department, it provides a structure and guideline to assist the qualified nurse to maintain competence and develop new skills in all areas of the Emergency department. It also ensures ongoing competence with a number of specific skills and can be used to identify knowledge deficits and educational needs.
Junior Doctors Training Records
These have been developed as an aid to structure the junior doctor’s education and monitor their progress during their post in the Emergency department. It enables the educational supervisor to assess their abilities and educational needs. The training record can be utilised as a focus for discussion during appraisals and enables the junior doctor’s progress to be reviewed, identifying strengths and weaknesses so that learning objectives can be set.
BOE Supporting Training, Education and Best Practice
As a commercial organisation, our ethos since we set out developing BOE as a company was to share the wealth created with the organisations we felt were fundamental to our business plan. We have striven to show that BOE will go above and beyond when it comes to supporting the industry on which our commercial viability depends.
Since our inception we have forged links with various bodies within the NHS concerned with training, education and best practice, particularly within Emergency and Trauma directorates. BOE has been a constant supporter and sponsor of the British Accident & Emergency Medicine ( BAEM ) Society since the early 90s. Over the years we have also seen a number of organisations such as the Faculty of Emergency Medicine emerge, with which we forged strong links through support and sponsorship. We now find ourselves in the present day where these organisations have combined their expertise under the umbrella of the College of Emergency Medicine. Through annual sponsorship, BOE is proud of its long association with this institution whose members are dedicated to developing best practice and education in the specialty of emergency medicine.
Since the early 90s our support has also been prevalent for the RCN A&E Section annual conferences were we would regularly sponsor major events. In 2005/6 the organisational structure of the society changed and it is now known as the Royal College of Nursing Emergency Care Association. BOE continues to support their annual conference which provides an ideal forum to further develop best practice.
The Royal Society of Medicine runs educational section meetings for Accident and Emergency several times a year and BOE first sponsored one of these meetings in 1993 and we are still providing our support to these events in 2010.
The BOE directors and staff are grateful that our support has been recognised over the years and believe that this is why we are now the largest and most reliable bespoke medical publishing company in the UK.
Interactive Whiteboards
To help our clients to keep up to date with the very latest in training and education delivery systems we can now introduce the new interactive whiteboard from Hitachi, especially designed to help you get the most out of training, brain storming and project planning.
Provided FREE to your directorate subject to contract.
BOE has already provided several Trusts with the Hitachi FX-Duo Interactive Whiteboard and the necessary training to use the system to its full potential.The versatile DuoBoard is a pen driven whiteboard that will also respond to the fingertip. Its hard surface will accommodate multiple users and is just about indestructible. Its multi-functionality makes it perfect for group work, educational games and training. Ideas, amendments to designs or documents, sketches, pictures or video clips can be reviewed and changed during a meeting then saved for immediate distribution. The DuoBoard can also be used to link staff in different locations around the country so they can participate in the same meeting in real time.
FX - Duo at a glance:
- Robust surface - the surface is robust and works even if there are scratches/dents on it.
- Low reflection - projector reflection is minimised making it gentle on the eye.
- Input methods - use a finger, electronic pen, pointer or any object to operate on the surface of the DuoBoard.
- Simultaneous inputs - operate the DuoBoard using both hands to scroll up or down and zoom in or out.
- Effective screen size - 77 inches ( 1,573 mm wide X 1,180 mm high).
Each DuoBoard is supplied with a 5 year Warranty.
Sponsored Uniforms
Recently BOE has been approached by several of its contracted clients asking whether we could provide them with a new set of uniforms, under the terms of their contracts, as part of the benefits package we have agreed to supply. Such has been the success of this we have decided to roll it out as an option to all our clients, subject to contract.
We use locally sourced manufacturers and can provide the tunics and trousers in a variety of colours to fit in with the Trust’s uniform policy. The tunics come embroidered with the Trust logo and staff grade and we have provided four sets for each member of staff.
BOE’s sponsorship of these items is normally represented by a tag or heat seal badge inside the tunic.
If you are already a client of BOE and are interested in amending your benefits package to accommodate new uniforms for your staff then contact your BOE Regional Manager who will look into the feasibility of it being supported by your contract.
Waiting Area Digital Display Screens
BOE has formed a partnership with an established audio visual company - Innovations in Technology ( I in T ). Using their extensive background in the audio visual market, BOE is able to bring digital screen displays to your department’s waiting areas.
The screens will allow you to display patient information and health messages tailored specifically to your hospital. A separate message area relating to the average waiting time and the type of triage system you operate can be updated as and when you require. Suitable advertisements from local businesses will be displayed within the sequence of messages providing relevant product information to patients. The income derived from the advertisements allows the screens, service and maintenance to be provided FREE of charge.
BOE has already enabled many of its valued clients to avail themselves of a screen for their waiting area. However, anyone who runs an Emergency department or is responsible for a waiting area within a hospital, whether you are a contracted client or not, may apply for this FREE service by sending an e-mail with your details to plasma@boe.uk.com
Endorsements
BOE has now been operating for over 20 years and during that time worked with many Trusts, managers and clinicians. We have strived for excellence and continue to do so. Over the years we have received many letters from the people we have worked with, endorsing our products and the service we provide. Please have a look for yourself through a small sample of these letters of endorsement and see what our clients have got to say about us.
