Author: Simon Philpott

Prism Healthcare Acquires Repose Furniture Ltd

25 January 2021

Repose Furniture Limited (Repose) is the latest specialized healthcare product provider to join the Prism Healthcare family, hot on the heels of Harvest Healthcare, an organisation celebrated for its customer-first values and approach. Repose are one of the market leaders in specialist seating solutions, designing and manufacturing a full range of specialist chairs ranging from entry-level riser-recliners to advanced bespoke healthcare chairs. Repose owner and Managing Director Lisa Wardley will continue to lead the Repose teams, reporting to Neil Davis, Managing Director of Harvest Healthcare.

“We acquired Repose, attracted by their intimate understanding of their customers and their customer needs. Now part of the Prism Healthcare family, we can further broaden our offerings to our homecare and long term care customers. Lisa and her team share the Harvest ethos of working in long-term partnerships with customers and suppliers, to support the delivery of exceptional resident and patient care, at an affordable price, and to try to make everyone’s lives a little easier.” explains Neil Davis, of Harvest Healthcare.

Lisa adds “Collaborating with our new colleagues at Harvest will enable us to build many new customer relationships whilst continuing to successfully serve our existing customer base.Exciting times!

Prism Healthcare is the group holding company that encompasses the subsidiary companies of; Prism Medical UK, Smirthwaite, Harvest Healthcare and now Repose. Today, their mission as Prism Healthcare is to provide specialized products and high-quality services across the UK – and the world – to a range of healthcare market sectors:

• Homecare
• Long-term care
• Education
• Acute care

Prism Healthcare’s services, products, and brands are many, varied, and cover the spectrum of care needed for all generations, from paediatric to the elderly.Their focus is on delivering meaningful health and social outcomes, with a single-minded mission to help carers do what they do best, making care – and life – easier for all.

As a UK manufacturer, service provider and inclusive employer, Prism operates from nine facilities across the UK. They enjoy deep rooted connections to each of the communities they are part of, which in turn provides opportunities for greater social engagement and interaction. “Understanding our social responsibility and positively impacting the lives of service users and their support circles is a significant dimension to the community services we provide,” says Emma Toas, Operations Director.

Of course, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, with lockdown forcing limited-to-no contact with family members, never before has consistent, high quality care been more important to the lives of those who need it most.

As Prism Healthcare CEO Stuart Meldrum reflects, “Covid-19 has presented us with more than a few challenges, but we’ve managed to support those that matter when it matters most. We are exceptionally proud with how our teams have supported OTs, care homes and services users in the best ways possible. Operating from multiple sites has meant that we can continue our mission – to provide choice and certainty, with a continuous and resilient service throughout the ongoing pandemic.”

COVID-19 Site Visitor Procedure.

11th June 2020

The health and safety of Prism UK Medical staff and any visitors is our priority. The current COVID-19 situation means that we have to be even more vigilant. This procedure sets out the requirements needed by sites to receive visitors. It also details the steps needed to be taken by visitors before and during their visit to our site.

Site Requirements

All Prism UK Medical sites must have a designated area for receiving visitors on site.

The area needs:

• To be separate from normal work offices and areas
• To have a supply of PPE available (gloves & surgical masks)
• To have hand sanitiser available in the area
• To have a supply of blank PMUKF101 – Visitor Assessment forms
• A folder for storing the completed forms
• A rubbish bin containing a bin bag

Pre-Visit

The host will send out the visitor assessment form (PMUKF-101) and ask the visitor to complete and return the form 48-24hours before the proposed visit. The host will also confirm the PPE requirements for the visit, for a normal visitor attending a meeting etc. this will be surgical mask and gloves.

The host will store the completed form in the folder in the designated area.

If work is being carried out during the visit, then an up to date risk assessment and method statement must be supplied to your host prior to the visit and these must detail actions to protect yourself and any staff members form the spread of COVID-19 and also detail any further PPE which may be needed.

Arrival

The host will sign the visitor in and issue them with a visitors pass as normal practice and then the visitor will be shown to the designated area and asked to complete the “Day of visit” section of the visitor assessment form (PMUKF-101). Once completed the host will confirm the answers have not changed and store the form in the file, (If the answers have changed the host will request that the visitor leaves site immediately. Any surfaces the visitor has touched are to be cleaned). The host will then confirm the company’s guidelines for keeping a 2m distance whilst the visitor is onsite. The visitor will then be asked to sanitise their hands before putting on their PPE.

During the Visit

Visitors are to be accompanied by a staff member at all times whilst on site and follow site safety precautions, one way systems etc. All PPE is to be worn for the entirety of the visit.

End of visit

The visitor will be escorted back to the designated area where they will remove their gloves and place them into the rubbish bin. They will then remove their mask and place this in the rubbish bin, again the visitor will need to sanitise their hands. The host will sign the visitor out and receive their visitors pass back, the visitor must now leave site.
The host will remove the waste bag from the bin and tie a knot in it and dispose of the bag in general waste, once this is done the host should sanitise or wash their hands and return to work.

Any problems or concerns please contact your site manager

[PMUKP-CV19VIS Issue 1 11/06/20]

Coronavirus (COVID 19) update.

10th June 2020

The last few weeks and months have been testing for all of us; challenging but also inspiring and rewarding We are proud to have been able to maintain our full range of services throughout the CV19 crisis and continue to do so going forwards. Our capacity has flexed to meet both the needs of our customers and their clients, and our protocols for customer and client interactions have evolved to protect all concerned.

As we slowly move to a ‘steady state’ we continue to safeguard the health of our employees, customers and preserve our ability to operate safely for everyone. To enable this service continuity, we have;

• Continuously monitored all government, healthcare and education advice in relation to CV19 and its impact
•  Taken advice from leading healthcare professionals and infection control practitioners
• Continued to provide our; assessment, installation and maintenance services in a safe manner
• Developed new and innovative services to support; rapid hospital discharges, equipping of temporary facilities and enable service continuity via remote engagements

The CV19 crisis has allowed us and many other organisations to rapidly review what we provide and how we provide it. This is largely due to the invaluable information and knowledge we have gained from the communities we work so hard to support. As a UK manufacturer, our business continuity team have ensured minimal impact on supply and we continue to enjoy good stock levels. As a national company we continue to deploy additional local engineers, installers and assessors to support all affected areas.

As we all strive to return to ‘normal’ the wellbeing of our communities is paramount, all our teams are PPE enabled so we can support in person or via remote tools We remain committed to providing the service and support that you, your teams and your clients need.

Please do not hesitate to contact us, we are always here to provide prompt assistance.
Thank you for your ongoing support

Best regards

Paul H Morton
Chief Commercial Officer
Prism Group.

Coronavirus (COVID 19) update.

19th March 2020

In light of the rapidly changing situation in the UK and across the world, we are writing to advise the specific activities & measures we have put in place to ensure we continue to provide our usual high-quality products & services, whilst also protecting our; customers, staff, stakeholders, suppliers and our families.

Our accreditation and repair services are deemed by the NHS as ‘essential’ for the health and care markets. We are here to help, and we will continue to provide services to our customers in; long term care, community, education and homecare. At the time of writing, we have no concerns about an outbreak occurring at any of our offices, and we have had no confirmed cases amongst any of our people.

However, it is important that we are fully prepared as the situation in the UK continues to develop. As well as reinforcing good hygiene practices and appropriate distancing throughout the company, we have taken the following measures to ensure: employee wellbeing, business continuity and ongoing product/service provision:

• Our business continuity team will ensure that the business continues to operate throughout the current pandemic.
• All offices are now occupied by essential personnel only, key workers are ‘agile’ and enabled to work from home. All showrooms are closed to external visitors until further notice.
• We have developed protocols that enable us to transfer activities between sites, should one or more sites become compromised. Our phone & IT systems are multisite and can be managed from any facility.
• All our field-based staff will comply with customer/client site access & HSQE protocols and adhere to our CV19 modified risk assessment protocols – whichever is the greater.
• Any member of staff, either office or field based who exhibits symptoms or whose immediate family exhibits symptoms will be required to seek medical advice and self-isolate as per HM Government advice.
• All international business-related travel has been stopped until further notice. UK business travel has been minimised.

Supply of product and services

• We can confirm continuity of supply of raw materials and components as well as imported finished goods. We currently enjoy good stock levels, and as a UK based manufacturer we have the ability and capacity to support our customers in the coming months.
• These ‘essential’ services will be provided in a compliant way that supports the safety and well-being of; our staff, our customers, their customers and all our families.
• Our field based commercial & customer services teams are there to help and ensure ongoing communication and action. They will respect our customers’ access and contact policies and continue to be available to support as required. All customers will have a minimum of three contact points to enable continuity.
• Regarding individual cities, towns and postcodes. It is not possible to predict where or how severe the impact of Corona Virus (Cv19) will be. Prism has the benefit of being a national company and has the ability to deploy additional engineers, installers and assessors from our UK team to temporarily support affected areas. This redeployment will be determined based on customer/client need.
• The wellbeing of our staff is paramount, and it is not expected that we carry out visits where the client has been to a heavily infected area recently, or if the user or other members of the household has suspected coronavirus.

These are unpredictable times and we are closely monitoring updates regarding the current pandemic and will align with any change in advice or guidance from either HM Government or the NHS. Our goal is to continue to support our customers, users, their carers & families through this challenging period.

Best regards

Paul H Morton
Chief Commercial Officer
Prism Group.

Prism Medical Acquires Harvest Healthcare.

Harvest Healthcare Ltd (Harvest) has been acquired by moving, handling and bathing specialist Prism Medical UK Ltd (Prism).

Harvest is an established provider of pressure area care and moving & handling products based in Rotherham, UK. Harvest has an excellent reputation for its national services and has a strong customer base of Long Term Care companies and Local Authorities. The combined Prism-Harvest range of products and services will allow both companies to provide an even broader value add offering to its customers. Harvest will continue to operate as a stand alone company, within the Prism Group. The acquisition of Harvest expands the Group’s offering to cover pressure area care, moving & handling and accessibility products and services, substantially increasing the Group’s reach in care homes, hospitals and the community.

Neil Davis, Managing Director of Harvest; “I am proud to have the opportunity to lead Harvest forward into this exciting new era, and to continue the positive development of our company. Our focus will always be to work in long-term partnerships with our customers and suppliers, to support the delivery of exceptional resident and patient care, at an affordable price, and to try to make everyone’s lives a little easier. I really enjoy working with the fantastic people in this industry, and am very happy that our new ownership structure will help us to continue our successful growth, to the shared benefit of our customers, our staff, and our supply chain partners.”

Stuart Meldrum, Chief Executive of Prism Medical said: ““I am delighted that Harvest have joined the Prism Group. Neil and the team have always focussed on providing the best service to their customers and with Neil continuing as Managing Director of Harvest this focus will continue into the future. Together we can provide even more value to our customers”

Prism Medical Acquires Care-Ability Healthcare.

County Durham-based Care-Ability Healthcare Ltd (Care-Ability) has been acquired by moving, handling and bathing specialist Prism Medical UK Ltd.

Care-ability is an established moving and handling product and services provider based in Washington, County Durham. Care-ability manufacture a range of quality sling products along with delivering installation and service support and has built up an excellent reputation for both the products and after-sales support they offer to customers including the NHS and Local Authorities.

The acquisition increases Prism Medical’s product and service offering along with increasing the UK manufacturing footprint and brings expert knowledge and skills to its customer base particularly in the North East of England.