Thursday, October 10, 2013

Ferno helps create a buzz for world-first child-friendly BUMBLEance

Ferno and our partner group company Acetech are delighted to have been involved in the development of the world’s first interactive ambulance service designed especially for children.
BUMBLEance is based in Ireland and was launched at the beginning of September. The ambulance, which looks like a giant bumble bee, has been kitted out with the latest technology yet it has been designed with the needs of children in mind.
The Saoirse Foundation - the charity behind the service - has created a fun environment for sick children to travel to and from hospitals and medical centres for scheduled appointments.
We have donated a Pegasus trolley complete with our latest antimicrobial pressure-reducing mattress and Biosafe harness and restraints. The company has also donated a NMI Track Lock to secure the Pegasus trolley in the BUMBLEance safely, allowing it to be positioned either on the offside or centre of the vehicle for patient treatment.
Our managing director Jon Ellis said: “This is a great initiative and one which Ferno is extremely proud to support and be a part of. An ambulance journey can be an unnerving and sometimes frightening experience for anyone but even more so for children. I am sure that BUMBLEance will have a positive impact on all the children they transport, as well as their parents and carers.”
Ferno has also teamed up with Nebulair Technologies to supply one of their Nebulair decontamination systems to BUMBLEance for free. The Nebulair NS500 uses patented dry mist technology to decontaminate an area and is ideal for use in hospitals, nursing homes, ambulances, schools, vets, offices, trains and aeroplanes.
Pierre Labat, director at Nebulair Technologies, explained: “The Nebulair system offers protection against a wide range of harmful pathogens including MRSA, Norovirus, C.difficile, Swine Flu and Salmonella. An ultrasonic nebuliser delivers a water-based high level disinfectant and the ultra light ‘dry mist ' sanitises all exposed surfaces, as well as the air within the target area ensuring that any airborne pathogens are also destroyed and no infection hotspots are missed.
“We are pleased to be working with Ferno to donate one of our systems for use within the BUMBLEance – a fantastic service for children who are poorly as well as for their families which I am in no doubt makes a huge difference to them during difficult times.”
In addition, Ferno’s vehicle intelligence system ACETECH has also been installed in the BUMBLEance. ACETECH is a fully integrated vehicle performance monitoring and control system for ambulances and other emergency response vehicles which provides on-board intelligence to help reduce operating and fuel costs. The system is the first of its kind for UK emergency vehicles and inter-connects four key modules that offer customised monitoring and control of all vehicle electronics - driving, driver restraint systems, GPS-based monitoring, tyre pressure monitoring and control of fleet vehicle assets in the field.
BUMBLEance has a 19 inch LED TV, Playstation games console, iPad Mini and a dual channel Wi-Fi hotspot which enables the ambulance to communicate, allowing live streaming from the internet, Skype calls and more.
BUMBLEance will transport children from across Ireland, both urban and rural locations, to wherever they are to be treated in a vehicle which has been brightly decorated inside and out. Two parents or carers can travel alongside the child and paramedics are fully qualified with specialist pediatric skills.
Tony Heffernan, founder of the Saoirse Foundation, said: “BUMBLEance provides stress-reducing journeys for children in state of the art, safe, fun vehicles. Every parent knows that an ambulance journey with a child can be very traumatic however within BUMBLEance, fun will be the medicine of the day.
“We have been very lucky to receive fantastic support from every sector of Irish society and companies like Ferno, ACETECH and Nebulair. The Saoirse Foundation receives no state funding for this service and is reliant on support from the business community and members of the public. These donations are integral to the future of the BUMBLEance service in Ireland and its growth.”
For more information visit www.BUMBLEance.com or You Tube .

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