NEW SECA PRICE LIST AVAILABLE FROM 15th FEBRUARY 2010
Prices on the website have recently been changed to reflect adjustments to Seca prices for the coming year. Now is a good time to take advantage of new prices on bariatric scales - 300kg capacity scales in a variety of formats from platform scales to handrail scales. These can be found in our Special Purpose Medical Scale section.
DECEMBER 2009: APPROVED MEDICAL SCALES - MARKS TO LOOK FOR.
The CE Mark
The Green M Label
The 4 digit number indicating the organisation responsible for the first verification of the scale
A red star indicates that the scale has been tested and rejected as being unfit for use.
The Crown indicates that a repair has been carried out and the scale is fit for use.
THE CLASSIFICATIONS
New approved medical scales are available in two accuracy classes – Class III and Class IIII.
Class III – the more accurate of the two classes and deemed suitable for diagnostic or treatment purposes.
Class IIII – Deemed suitable for checking a patient’s weight for routine record purposes only.
When buying new scales it is important, therefore, for the user to consider what level of accuracy is appropriate and to choose equipment accordingly.
In addition to the Class III or Class IIII marking, all new scales that conform to the legislation must also carry the first three marks shown above.
SCALES PURCHASED PRIOR TO 1 JANUARY 2003
Scales purchased prior to 1st January 2003 can continue in use indefinitely. The law is not retrospective so you can continue to use older equipment while ever it is serviceable.
ENFORCING THE LEGISLATION
Enforcing the legislation is the responsibility of Trading Standards Departments and their Officers have the power to enter premises and inspect and test medical weighing scales in hospitals, doctors’ surgeries, health centres, care homes etc.
SCALES THAT INDICATE IN BOTH METRIC AND IMPERIAL
Scales that indicate both in metric and imperial (dual reading) are no longer available in an approved format for medical use.
Due to the UK move towards metrication, there is no longer a standard for imperial weights and we no longer keep imperial test weights for calibration purposes.
Perhaps the most important reason to stop using equipment with dual indication, however, is that it is very easy to make an error – for example
a) If the operator is unaware that the scale can display in metric or imperial.
b) If the operator fails to make it clear whether the weight was recorded in metric or in imperial.
Always ensure that staff are familiar the correct procedure for operating dual indicating scales.
THE LACORS MEDICAL WEIGHING PROJECT
The ongoing LACORS Medical Weighing Project was instigated because of the lack of accurate and well-maintained weighing equipment being used in hospitals and also because of mistakes occurring due to weight recording errors described above. In worst case scenarios, LACORS noted that lives were put at serious risk because of such errors.
It is possible that the LACORS survey of hospital weighing equipment may be extended to other medical establishments in the future.
OCTOBER 2009 - PROWEIGHT BATCH WEIGHERS ON YOUTUBE
Proweight batch weighers are now on Youtube. If you need to save time and money on pre-packing any loose, free-flowing product go to youtube and search Proweight - weigh-packing is much more accurate and so much easier with one of our batch weighers and now you can see for yourself.
JULY 2009 - More new Private Line Scales from Seca.
Looking for the perfect present - something gold perhaps?
Seca introduce more exclusive scales from the Private Line such as the Seca Aurea 795 which is gold-plated with a white leather foot tread, or the red hot Seca Colorata 760. Check out more of the new models in our Health & Fitness range.
JUNE 23rd 2009 - Final report of the LACORS National Medical Weighing Project 2008/9
In many cases this was the first time that Trading Standards Officers had visited NHS hospitals to survey weighing equipment in use. Their initial findings illustrated a real need for improvements in purchasing and training policy so that patient care would improve as a result and in October 2008 LACORS made the following recommendations:-
1. Each hospital or trust should purchase weighing equipment centrally.
2. Each trust should have a programme of testing for their equipment.
3. Basic training should be given to all necessary staff.
4. Inaccurate equipment should be removed from use, pending repair/replacement.
5. All scales for medical applications should be accuracy Class III or higher.
6. All scales for medical applications should only display metric units.
Follow up visits show that standards have improved and that all six recommendations remain necessary, especially the first three so that hospitals' quality systems become more robust.
What comes next? LACORS recommend that scales in medical settings should be considered in future work programmes including GP surgeries, Health Visitors, School Nurses, private and military hospitals. In addition, other medical equipment such as blood pressure monitors, thermometers and height measures could also benefit from inspection by Trading Standards Officers.
Full report at: http://www.lacors.com
November 2008
LACORS Produces Its Interim Report Of The National Medical Weighing Project
Between April and August, council trading standards teams inspected around 8000 sets of scales in 200 hospitals across the UK with particular focus on oncology and paediatrics departments. Key findings include:-
• 34% of equipment tested was inaccurate
• Only 16% of hospitals trained staff in basic use of weighing equipment
• 22% of scales were not set to zero
• 40% of scales were Class IIII
• 76% of hospitals maintained an inventory of their scales though many were not kept up to date
• 67% of hospitals had a consistent inspection regime for their equipment
• 40% of scales were switchable between metric and imperial which can lead to confusion.
The recommendations give cause for more optimism and include:-
• One department in each hospital or trust should be responsible for procurement and maintenance
• Each trust should have an appropriate programme of testing
• Basic training in the use of weighing equipment should be incorporated into training and induction procedures
• Inaccurate equipment should be removed from service and repaired or replaced
• Whilst some Class IIII scales may be suitable for some medical purposes, new equipment should be Class III (or higher if appropriate).
• Scales should only be capable of display in metric.
LACORS believe that these measures will achieve significant improvement in patient care, costs savings and efficiencies in procurement together with the ability to demonstrate due diligence.
OCTOBER 2008
A big thank you to everyone who visited our stand at GLEE/Pet Index at the NEC last month - both to our existing customers for taking the time to call by and also to new customers who have subsequently ordered new batch weighers and heat sealers.
To mark the occasion of our 30th year in business, we held an Anniversary Prize Draw at the show and are delighted to announce our lucky winner - Mr. Johnston from Horse First, Co. Down, Northern Ireland who has won a stylish Seca Elegantia 815 personal scale. Our congratulations to Mr. Johnston and our thanks to everyone who took part.
For further information about GLEE/Pet Index go to www.gleebirmingham.com
APRIL 2008
THE LATEST PERSONAL WEIGHING TECHNOLOGY FROM PROWEIGHT
THE SECA PRIVATE LINE IS NOW IN OUR HEALTH & FITNESS CATEGORY
Seca, the world's market leader in medical scales, has recently introduced the Private Line, a new range of personal scales now available on the Proweight website under our Health & Fitness Scales category. This new range incorporates beautiful design with innovative and practical features, all at affordable prices.
Take the new Step-Off function for example. No need to turn the scale on - just step on it, wait until the Step-Off instruction appears, stand beside the scale and read off your weight. What could be simpler - and energy saving too.
Check out the Seca Sensa Model 804 - an affordable scale for personal body composition analysis; measuring body fat and body water and capable of storing and recalling the data for different family members. Seca leave nothing to chance - the rear-facing buttons prevent data from being entered by mistake so you can rely on the readings.
Full details and prices of the complete Private Line range can be found in the Health & Fitness section of our online shop. Go weigh with style!
FEBRUARY 2008
Proweight - Improving Medical Weighing
Many years ago standards in medical weighing caused so much concern at Proweight that we distributed our own fact sheet entitled 'Helping You Weigh Accurately'. There is a funny side to hearing "this scale's not right - my weight's doubled" but there is also a serious side.
For example, last time you were in hospital, were you weighed in metric or imperial, were you weighed on an approved scale and was it operated correctly? Should you care? Yes - because your treatment in hospital can be calculated according to your weight, and it is at this point that using the right scale, knowing how to use it correctly and knowing your metric display from your imperial becomes extremely important. Important enough for LACORS (the Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services) to launch a nationwide project to improve the standard of weighing equipment and weighing practices in our hospitals after Trading Standards Officers found some alarming examples of poor weighing practice.
How Do You Know If The Scale Is Fit For Purpose?
Since the 1st January 2003 new scales intended for weighing patients for monitoring, diagnosis and medical treatment must be of an approved type to either Class III or Class IIII (Class III being the higher specification). Scales purchased before that date can continue in use. All conforming medical scales must carry the green M label in addition to a CE mark and a four digit number of the authorised testing body.
Proweight advice for best practice in medical weighing includes the following:-
- Use a Class III scale wherever a patient is being treated using their weight as a reference point. For record-keeping purposes a Class IIII is adequate.
- Know how to use the scale correctly - use the instruction book or seek help.
- If the scale does indicate in both metric and imperial, make sure you know which is being displayed when you use the scale.
- Please don't use domestic scales in medical establishments.
- Medical scales should be maintained by qualified and experienced weighing engineers. It is a specialised field, so for safety's sake, please leave the job to professional scale firms who understand how the equipment works and how to fix it.
- At Proweight we are always happy to help with your choice of weighing equipment and how best to use it.
Further information on the weighing regulations can be found at the UK Weighing Federation website - www.ukwf.org.uk
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