Vision Steps Up to Support AHS

In these uncertain times, community is more important than ever. People are coming together in spirit — even if they’re physically distanced — to support one another through this global pandemic. Vision Integrity Engineering is proud to offer our support to our fellow Albertans at Alberta Health Services (AHS) as they guide us through these strange days. To give a helping hand, we have designed and manufactured an adjustable standing arm, fitted with a gooseneck iPad holder from StarTech. This iPad stand allows patients in palliative care to comfortably speak to their families without risking the spread of COVID-19.

Palliative care remains as important as ever, though it faces new obstacles due to quarantine and social distancing requirements. Nurses work to improve the quality of life of their patients by reducing the physical and psychological symptoms they suffer. Even as the world changes in response to the ongoing pandemic, these amazing palliative care nurses continue to provide the compassion and humanity of in-person contact to patients. They now have the added duty of balancing their compassionate care with taking measures to counter the risk of possible spread of COVID-19 to patients, support workers, and staff.

Providing patients with the freedom to talk with their loved ones is an important aspect of palliative care. By staying in touch with loved ones, patients may still talk about their values and goals, and maintain a level of independence and confidence important to their care. Due to quarantine measures, much of the communication between patients and loved ones has gone digital. Though electronic devices are useful and allow loved ones to stay in touch, even while distanced, some patients may face difficulties. For example, patients with physical impairments may be unable to hold or manipulate computers, phones, or tablets, without great difficulty.

Vision Integrity Engineering supports Alberta Health Services by providing a solution to this physical barrier. Donating our services to AHS, we have designed an adjustable standing arm that allows patients, nurses, and support workers to use and adjust an iPad with ease. This relieves them of the physical strain, allowing them to comfortably video chat with friends and family. It will also allow physicians and nurses to safely communicate with patients from a distance in a timely manner. These floor stands are an invaluable tool for the provision of virtual care.

Without Vision Integrity donating our services, this specialized equipment would have been difficult for AHS to obtain. It was unavailable from all sources, and delivery time for the equipment faced a significant delay. We were able to provide three units to AHS, getting this important equipment to them much faster than it would have been otherwise available. Thanks to StarTech, we were able to obtain gooseneck iPad holders to clamp onto the arms — an important component of the floor stands.

Alberta Health Services has done an amazing job providing care and support to Albertans during this epidemic. Vision Integrity is proud to offer our support back to these frontline workers. Even as restrictions are lightened and patients are able to see loved ones under certain circumstances, Vision Integrity is happy to make acquiring these stands easier for AHS both now and in the future. By helping our community, we make the road back to normalcy a little bit easier.