Ten LED nightlights have made Ward 33 safer for staff and patients like Barry.

Deputy Sister Pushpa Matthew and her team were concerned about the number of falls occurring on Ward 33 at Glenfield Hospital.

Falls are the most frequently reported type of patient safety incident in hospitals and often lead to an increased length of stay. Falls can be devasting for patients. “They can cause bleeding, head injuries, fractures, and in worst cases, death,” says Pushpa.

Many patients on Ward 33 are very sick, frail, and have limited mobility. But the team discovered that most falls happened at night when there were less staff available. They also realised the lighting system was a major factor in explaining the eight falls reported each month.

Pushpa explained to us: “From 9.30pm, we have the lights off to allow patients to rest. Patients may wake up confused, need attention, get out of bed whilst it’s dark and may fall due to the lack of light. Unfortunately, because of the lighting system we cannot switch a single light on without waking up all 29 patients on the Ward.”

Together, Pushpa and her team had a bright idea – portable LED nightlights would help staff and patients to move around the ward safely during the night.

One patient who has seen first-hand, the benefit of these lights is Barry Wood, of Littlethorpe.

For over 30 years, Barry worked as an aerospace engineer until one day, his life changed forever. Seven years ago, when walking the dog with his wife, Barry suddenly took ill.

Doctors diagnosed Barry with a rare heart condition, and he was cared for on Ward 33. Years later, he regularly comes back to the Ward to receive treatment for his condition when his chest pains return. He tends to be in hospital for about ten days at a time.

“As soon as I start infusion treatment to widen my arteries, I feel much better. My infusions help take my pain away, but they need replacing every 24 hours. An alarm goes off at around five in the morning, and a nurse comes to my bedside to sort out my cannula using an LED nightlight.”

Barry agrees that now, thanks to the use of the portable nightlight, it is much safer on the Ward at night. He says: “We can now use the light to find the toilet in the dark without bumping into other patients or tripping over. Thank you so much for funding such a great idea.”

Because of your charitable gifts, Pushpa and her dedicated team now use ten portable LED nightlights to attend to patients when it’s dark. As a result of these devices, the number of falls reported have halved over the past six months– these nightlights have improved safety on the Ward which is great for patient outcomes.