Harvest Healthcare

Equipped to care

News

The MDR – We’re Ready!

What is the MDR?

On the 26th of May the new Medical Device Regulation (MDR) comes into force.

This is a replacement for the old Medical Device Directive (MDD) and governs the production and distribution of medical devices in Europe. While originally something the UK was part of as part of the EU, the UK have now signed up to meet those regulations alongside the EU to provide standardised processes and standards for manufacturers and distributors.

Here at Harvest we are proud to say all our medical devices are in line with the MDR, and we will continue to supply all our products without any break in supply.

What Changes is the MDR Making for Customers?

Our customers are unlikely to notice any changes in the products, beyond some simple changes in the labelling such as the addition of more barcodes.
With all our products up to scratch, we won’t have any break in trading for our medical devices, and our suppliers for the products we don’t make in house are all also certified.
We always love feedback on our products, but this is becoming more front and centre with the new MDR. What you may find is that we ask you for more feedback, and we would be really grateful for your support as always.

What Changes is the MDR Making for Suppliers?

The new MDR is a lot more comprehensive than the old MDD. Where the old MDD had 23 articles, the MDR has a hefty 123, and comes in at nearly three times as many pages! While nothing from the old MDD has been lost, a lot has been added in, including:

• A unique device identification system
• Changes in the classes of some major product groups
• More stringent requirements for clinical evaluations and investigations
• Upgraded requirements for post-market surveillance.

We have been working hard to be ready and waiting for the MDR and are thrilled we can say we have full compliance. Naturally, an increase in regulation leads to improvements for everyone in the supply chain, and we are really excited to be part of this new chapter for medical devices.

Did You Know?

We are dedicated to the best regulatory compliance at Harvest, but also help our customers meet their regulatory needs too!
Side rail height regulations are an area we regularly support our customers with. Put in place by the government and checked by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in order to prevent entrapment, these regulations can be a minefield for organisations with lots of bed and mattress combinations. Thankfully, any Harvest mattress is compliant when on any Harvest Woburn bed – how’s that for peace of mind?

Have a look at our comprehensive guide to bed rail regulations more information on how we can help you >> Bed Rail Regulations: Your Guide

 

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Acquisition of Repose Furniture Ltd

We are delighted to announce that on 18th January 2021, Repose Furniture Ltd was acquired by the Prism Group, becoming a sister company to Harvest Healthcare.

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. www.reposefurniture.com

This acquisition will allow Harvest to add the supply and service of specialist seating alongside our current range of beds, pressure care and moving & handling equipment.

Repose Furniture owner and Managing Director Lisa Wardley will continue to lead Repose long-term, reporting to Neil Davis, Managing Director Harvest Healthcare.

Neil comments:
“I am delighted to inform you about this exciting development for Harvest under Prism Group ownership, which will accelerate both the positive development of our company and more importantly our ability to serve our 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.
The Repose range of specialist seating solutions are suited perfectly to our core markets of care homes and local authority community equipment loan stores, and when coupled with Harvest’s nationwide assessment, installation, repair and maintenance services, means we can now offer market-leading service in specialist seating.”

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!”

Should you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact your Account Manager or any of the following:

Neil Davis – Managing Director
Bruce McEwan – Key Account Director
Lauren Davis – Sales & Marketing Manager
Oskar Solvason – Operations Director

Contact us on 01709 377172 or sales@harvesthealthcare.co.uk

Coronavirus Update

We now find ourselves in a second UK wide lockdown. Like the first one, companies within the Prism group will continue to provide products and services to you and your clients. Our production, office and field engineering teams are now experienced in providing services to those in need, whilst
operating within the framework of Covid restrictions and guidance.
The first lockdown resulted in excessive product and service demands on ourselves due to the withdrawal of other suppliers from the market. It is expected that service and supply during this lockdown will be more stable, primarily due to our increased stock levels. To ensure service and
supply continuity, we will constantly adapt our service delivery to:

  • Reflect all government, healthcare and education advice concerning CV19 and its impact.
  • Reflect advice from leading healthcare professionals and infection control practitioners.
  • Support new and innovative services; rapid hospital discharges, equipping of temporary facilities and support service users via remote engagements.
  • Provide a resilient and safe operating environment for our employees and customers.

Like many other organisations, the Covid crisis has made us review and adapt our products and services to ensure they continue to serve our customers in our changing world. We have done this by listening to the invaluable information and knowledge gained from the communities we work so hard to support. And as the situation unfolds, we’ll keep listening and adapting our services so that together we can continue to provide the best client care.
Please keep in touch and let us know where we can assist, we’ll do our very best to help.

Creation of specialist Prism Long Term Care Division within Harvest Healthcare

Announcement from Stuart Meldrum, Prism Medical UK CEO:

In order to drive profitable growth in the important Care Home/ Long-Term Care (LTC) sector, Prism Group are bringing together all of their care home expertise and accounts under one organisation – Harvest Healthcare.

Harvest will be able to offer an industry-leading product portfolio which will now encompass a comprehensive range of pressure care equipment, profiling beds, patient-handling, and bathing products. The Division will have its own dedicated nationwide team of circa 30 Service Engineers capable of maintaining and repairing the full range of equipment, backed up by product specialists to support and train our customers in all relevant disciplines.

Harvest have successfully grown their Care Home/LTC business over the past few years by offering unrivalled levels or customer service and tailored solutions based on a deep understanding of individual customers’ needs and challenges. The creation of this specialist team will support Harvest in accelerating their ambitious growth plans in this sector.

All current Prism Medical UK (PMUK) LTC customers will be managed within this new division, and therefore several members of staff will transfer from PMUK to join the Harvest team over the next few weeks.

Neil Davis, Managing Director at Harvest Healthcare, commented: “I am delighted to strengthen the Harvest team with colleagues who bring valuable customer relationships and patient handling expertise. We are on an exciting journey and will continue going from strength to strength”.

This transfer will also allow PMUK to focus on growing its core markets in Local Authorities, Homecare and the NHS Care sectors.

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Fully Contact-Free Mattress Decontamination

In the face of Covid-19 Harvest Healthcare have launched a new and improved fully contact-free active mattress decontamination, disinfection, service and repair facility.
The process is specifically designed to kill Corona virus, as well as provide full removal of any other viruses, fungi, bacteria and soiling, by using industrial ozone machines and certified cleaning fluid.
With safety at the core of the programme design, this service requires no contact. Mattresses can be collected from outside your facility and delivered directly back to your door.
Not only does this service give you peace of mind for infection control, it frees up staff time, ensures compliance, and all with rapid turnaround.
Don’t forget all our other operations are up and running too for wider support.
These are just some of the ways that Harvest Healthcare is supporting customers, users and partners during the current situation.

To find out more about our active mattress disinfection, decontamination and servicing offering, or to discuss a broader disinfection project, please email:

sales@harvesthealthcare.co.uk

For general enquiries call:
01709 377 172

Or go to this link to see what other services we provide 

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