Five NHS Trusts Ask to See QuickCare Pro Chair Within 36 Hours of Launch

Within 36 hours of launching the QuickCare Pro Lie-Flat Chair, five NHS trusts had reached out asking to see it.

We’re not going to pretend we weren’t blown away by the response. When you bring a new product to market you believe implicitly in it, but can never quite anticipate what the response will be.

The kind of reception we got from the acute care market came through loud and clear that this was a solution acute care wards were crying out for.

Here’s the full story.

Jump straight to…

• • Where We Started: The Sertain ICU Chair
  • What did ICU and Acute Care Wards Actually Need?
  • Introducing the QuickCare Pro: Built Around the Ward, Not Just the Patient
  • Why the NHS Response Doesn’t Surprise Us (Even Though It Did)
  • Conclusion
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Where We Started: The Sertain ICU Chair

For years, our acute care offering was built around the Sertain. It’s an Australian-made lie-flat chair designed for ICU and critical care environments. We won the UK distributorship for it early on, and it filled a real gap in the market. Getting patients out of bed and into a supportive, repositionable chair is a clinical priority in acute care, which the Sertain did well.

The feedback we received from hospital wards around the UK taught us something else though. Clinicians fully understood the concept, but the feedback that consistently came through was that the chairs were heavy, bulky and difficult to navigate in narrow corridors and tight bays.

In ICUs where space is at a premium and staff are already stretched, this posed a real challenge for care staff and hampered patient flow. Despite doing everything it said on the tin, this aspect of the chair was letting it down. We had to start thinking about what a better answer would look like.

Sertain HILO Chair for ICU, Intensive Care, and Early Mobilisation

What did ICU and Acute Care Wards Actually Need?

In an ICU or HDU, a patient’s needs change multiple times a day. They might need to lie flat for a procedure, sit upright for a meal, tilt forward to assist standing, or transfer to a different location entirely. Every one of those transitions adds extra manual handling risk and strain for both carer and patient.

The chairs traditionally been used around these wards have been designed around narrower clinical functions and then adapted. This unfortunately shows up in the bulky frames, clunky repositioning and limited manoeuvrability. And in environments where infection control is critical, every additional surface and cable is another thing to clean.

What wards desperately needed was a chair that could transition the patient along the whole acute care pathway, from admission through to treatment and discharge, that was practical and easy for staff to use.

Introducing the QuickCare Pro: Built Around the Ward, Not Just the Patient

The QuickCare Pro is the chair that does just that, streamlining the patient pathway and making life easier for everyone. It’s a lie-flat acute care chair designed from the ground up for the realities of busy ICU, HDU, day surgery, dialysis, and oncology wards.

A Chair That Moves Around Easily

The wide transport handle and large castors make life so much easier on a working ward. Moving the chair through narrow corridors, into tight bay spaces, and into lifts can be done with ease with the QuickCare Pro.

Hi-Lo That Works for Everyone

The height adjustment runs from 470mm to 800mm, and is controlled by an electric foot pedal on either side of the chair. This brings the chair low enough for smooth patient transfers and high enough for carer access and transitioning to standing with the anterior tilt position. The foot pedal control means nurses can adjust the height on the move.

Positioning That Covers the Whole Pathway

The true lie-flat position means the chair doubles up as a stretcher for procedures and transportation, so no separate equipment needed. Beyond that, the range of different positioning options is extensive, with tilt-in-space for pressure relief, Fowler’s position for breathing and circulation, shock position with legs elevated, and Trendelenburg. All this is operated through a single electric handset, making the QuickCare extremely versatile in adapting to a range of clinical scenarios.

Arms That Do More

The Multiflex armrests flip up to form a level tray for cannulation, adjust in height for different patients and sideways transfers, angle for cannulation precision, and remove completely when lateral transfer is needed. Both flat and padded surfaces are available, depending on the level of pressure relief required.

Built-In Infection Control

The materials and design of the chair are created to the highest infection standards for acute care, with medical-grade antimicrobial vinyl, fully sealed electrical components, and retractable cables. In acute care environments where HCAIs are a constant concern, these aren’t just nice-to-haves, they’re an essential part of infection prevention and control.

Why the NHS Response Doesn’t Surprise Us (Even Though It Did)

When five NHS trusts ask to see a chair within 1.5 days of launch, it’s tempting to put that down to a good launch campaign but we know there’s a lot more behind it.

The acute care seating market has been underserved for a long time. Wards have been managing with equipment that works around the problem rather than solving it. The QuickCare Pro addresses a real, consistently reported problem, and brings operational efficiencies and wider benefits to busy, fast-paced acute care wards.

Reduces unnecessary transfers

Having a therapy chair that can meet all different positioning requirements saves having to transfer the patient from chair to couch and back again. While reducing discomfort for the patient, this saves time and cost, with a single-use solution for all settings.

Improves patient flow

Creating a seamless patient experience and efficiently moving the patient between different locations speeds up patient flow, creating operating efficiencies for the hospital and Trust.

Safer patient handling and transfers

When patient handling and transfers are required, the QuickCare Pro is compatible with hoists, and the armrests can be removed to create safe, smooth lateral or forward transfers.

Conclusion

The QuickCare Pro Lie-Flat Chair changes the seating landscape for clinicians working in acute care wards. By combining hospital-grade infection control, extensive electric positioning, and intuitive mobility features into a single chair, it removes the need for multiple pieces of equipment along every stage of the patient pathway.

For ICU, HCU, day surgery, dialysis, and oncology wards, the versatility of the QuickCare Pro has a direct impact on the bottom line, resulting in fewer patient transfers, faster patient flow, and reduced strain on care staff.

At the same time, patients benefit from more comfort, better pressure relief, and a smoother experience from admission through to discharge.

Want to see the QuickCare Pro for yourself?

We’re arranging demonstrations across NHS trusts now. If you’d like to see the QuickCare Pro on your ward, or want to talk through whether it’s the right fit for your environment, we’d love to hear from you!