London traffic is so bad that one major hospital will soon use drones to ferry urgent blood samples its lab.
It takes van or motorbike couriers more than half an hour to drive between Guy’s Hospital and the testing lab at St Thomas’ Hospital, part of the same NHS trust.
Drones can complete the journey in just two minutes, so the trust is launching a six-month trial this autumn, with potential expansion in the future.
They’ll start with blood samples from surgical patients who are at high risk of complications from bleeding disorders.
Professor Ian Abbs, chief executive at Guy’s and St Thomas’, said: ‘The drone pilot combines two of our key priorities – providing the best possible patient care and improving sustainability.
‘We are proud to be the first trust in London to trial this innovative approach to help speed up blood sample analysis for our most urgent cases.’
If that proves effective, drone could be rolled out for other types of deliveries and at other hospitals.
The pilot scheme, regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being run alongside healthcare logistics company Apian and drone delivery company Wing.
Sophie O’Sullivan, director of future of flight at the Civil Aviation Authority, said: ‘Innovative trials like this from Guy’s and St Thomas’, Apian and Wing help demonstrate the many positive and safe ways that drones can be used for society – in this case, to improve patient outcomes and deliver significant environmental benefits.’
Dr Hammad Jeilani, co-founder of Apian, said: ‘Drones can increase the responsiveness and resilience of healthcare logistics, allowing clinicians to be more productive and patients to get the care they need sooner.
‘An NHS drone delivery network in London, starting with this innovative trial, will provide on-demand, automated and sustainable deliveries, helping the NHS create more efficient models of working and our doctors and nurses to deliver the highest quality care for patients.’
Drones have been proven safe for medical deliveries in previous NHS trials.
They were used to deliver blood stocks between hospitals in one recent project run by NHS Blood and Transplant.
Tests found no significant difference between the clinical viability of ‘red blood cell components’ sent by road and by air between Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s Wansbeck Hospital and Alnwick Infirmary and back again.
A similar trial for blood platelets is being planned.
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