Tell us a little about yourself and where you worked:  

“I was a hospital porter at Royal Derby Hospital, [a 1,100 bed hospital in the North of England]…I performed a variety of tasks, including moving patients between departments, accompanying them to and from surgery, relocating their belongings and transferring their medications”.

Did you face any challenges with patient property ? 

“I was often approached by patients or nurses on behalf of patients whose belongings, including mobile phones, watches, bags, and other items, they had lost in the hospital. I often encountered patients who were looking for medical devices such as hearing aids, walking sticks, glasses, and even false teeth. The most concerning instances were when patients’ confidential paperwork or essential drugs were lost.”

“It always shocked me how many items get lost or misplaced in hospitals that are never found and the time taken by porters, orderlies and nurses to try and find them. It is very time-consuming, to go to every place that patient had been when searching for these items. Most of the time this was when things fell out of pockets and handbags when placed on the back of chairs or next to beds, but items also got lost in transit from the ward to surgery or treatment areas. I and many other staff spent a lot of time searching for patient belongings around the hospital. Sometimes we found them, but a lot of times they remained missing, and a lost property claim needed to be filled.”

What was the impact on patients ?

“When a patient’s item was lost, patients could get very distressed, thinking that it would never be found. Losing items such as phones or wallets is frustrating for patients and can be very frightening for confused patients, who often mistakenly believe that nurses have taken their belongings.”

“This was especially the case with elderly and vulnerable patients, and with people coming out of surgery who were still sedated and confused. Some patients insisted on looking for the items themselves even though they were bed-bound, which risked injury and meant a nurse needed to spend more time with these patients to ensure they didn’t fall out of their beds.”

“If a patient lost their dentures, medication, or hearing aid, it could also have a direct impact on their health, which made them even more agitated and upset. It was very stressful for the nurses when important belongings and medication went missing, and it took up a lot of time on an almost daily basis.”
 

What do you think of the new SMARTSafe Belongings Bags?

These new property bags have been very useful. The barcode for tracking, has significantly streamlined the process. Instead of spending time searching for misplaced items, I quickly scanned the barcode to match the belongings to the correct patient. 

This efficient system not only saves me a lot of time but also provides peace of mind to the patients, assuring them that their property being looked after.