Simple drinking device for hospital patients wins Queens Award for Enterprise

25 April 2013

Bristol-based company Hydrate for Health Ltd has won a Queen’s Award for Enterprise for 'The Hydrant' a simple, hands-free, drinking system designed to prevent dehydration in patients in hospital and other settings.

The Hydrant simply clips, hangs or hooks on beds, chairs, wheelchairs and in many other locations, removing the problem of reaching, lifting, or holding drinks. It gives easy access to fluids at all times by placing the drink next to the user, making it easy for vulnerable people to drink without need of assistance.

The impact of effective dehydration on vulnerable people in hospital, care homes and in care at home is astonishing and has a huge effect on wellness, length of stay and infection rates. Dehydration is recognised as the cause of 2 deaths per day in the NHS. This issue regularly grabs nationwide headlines and until now there has been no simple solution.

The Hydrant -- just a simple water container with a lid and drinking tubeThe Hydrant (see image on right) is now being used by many thousands of people in hospitals, care homes and at home and is delivering visible improvement in the quality of life for the users.

At the same time it is saving £millions for the NHS by preventing one of the biggest problems in healthcare from occurring and thus preventing admission to hospital or shortening the length of stay for patients.

Studies have shown a 35% reduction in length of stay and up to 100% reductions in urinary infections and, in hospitals, a £36 saving for every £1 spent through use of The Hydrant.

The Hydrant was developed as result of personal experience in hospital following a spinal operation by the company’s founder Mark Moran. It is now one of the High Impact Innovations within the NHS and is in use in many locations worldwide.

Mark Moran stated, "It is the perfect example of the ‘Low-cost / High Impact’ innovation that is behind the NHS drive to rapidly adopt proven products and services throughout the healthcare system via the Innovation Health and Wealth programme."

Jim Easton, NHS National Director for Improvement & Efficiency said, “The Hydrant: cheap, easy to implement, solving one of the most basic problems in healthcare. Offering potentially the highest return to investment ratio of any product I have ever seen."

 

 

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