Renfrew Group International has been working in close partnership with NHS Blood and Transplant Services (NHSBT) to create a user centred design for a new chair to enhance the donation experience and improve the whole process for support staff. The resulting design specification ensured that they achieved exactly what the service required, and at the optimum price.
The need for a totally new chair arose from several requirements, most of which were not being met by existing furniture. One of the major problems is the tendency for donors to faint during the donation process. The recovery position is completely different from the blood donating position and NHSBT realised that this should be addressed in the new chair through design innovation.
The success of the new blood donor Chair programme for NHSBT demonstrates what is possible in the NHS with a clear vision and strong stakeholder participation. The chair is more comfortable in use, provides all round support to the body in various conditions and is configured to conform to the new Gold Standard Clinical Pathway for Blood Donation. For efficient, safe and easy handling by staff, the chair breaks down and stacks on trolleys in sets.
RGI won the contract on a competitive basis via NHS National Innovation Centre (NIC) for the design stages and were engaged directly with NHSBT to collaboratively develop the prototypes and competitively tender for the manufacture and supply of the national requirement.
