Portable Obstetrics & Gynecology Examination Equipment

Description

The Labor and Delivery Ward at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi,Ghana is equipped with eight supine beds and two delivery chairs. Due to equipment shortages and an often overwhelming patient flow, delivering mothers are not guaranteed a supine bed at the onset of labor nor a delivery chair for birthing. Patients are required to wait in the hallway until they reach a dilation of five centimeters when they are provide a supine bed if one is available. If and when they are given access to a supine bed, the women must remain on the bed until they are dilated 9-10 cm, which marks the end of the second stage of labor. At this stage in the birthing process, the woman is prepared to deliver and must walk from the supine bed to one of the delivery chairs if one should be available. Oftentimes mothers deliver on the supine bed or even outside in the hallway. Delivering in the supine position is the most taxing and strenuous position for a woman. As such, the ultimate goal is to replace all the supine beds in the ward with reconfigurable delivery beds to improve patient care, safety, and health.

Prototype of ob/gyn reconfigurable bed

The engineering team was asked to design and manufacture a reconfigurable obstetrics delivery bed that patients can use during all three stages of labor, which could potentially improve patient flow, increase patient and newborn safety during delivery, increase the quality of patient care, and increase the number of delivery stations.