The safest way to travel

28 Mar 2019, 3:59 p.m.

Illustration of the sample chutes at GOSH

Did you know that across the hospital, within the walls, floors and corridors, patient blood samples whizz from our wards to the labs, via the chute, where they’re processed and used for diagnostics?

In the blink of an eye, every lab sample is propelled through a network of tubes. In a hospital the size of GOSH, making good time means better medicine, and the chute is an important part of a complex chain that gives our doctors timely lab results they need to make decisions about our patients.

The clock starts ticking as soon as a sample is drawn, and our lab team relies on every ward getting samples to them as quickly as possible. The chute system has a complete set of checks and balances – sensing where containers are needed and sending them. It also controls the airflow to slow down the containers for a soft landing at their destination.

The Family Wall Project continues

Great Ormond Street Hospital Family Wall highlights complex mix of specialist care and all the teams involved in patient journeys.

Toddler who spent life in hospital is thriving after life-saving transplant

A family who spent the best part of 13 months in hospital praise their ‘new family’ at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), who cared for their son while he waited for a life-saving heart transplant.

Scientists discover clues to help children with rare muscle disease

New ground-breaking research by experts at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and University College London (UCL) has led to an exciting discovery that could help children with the rare muscle disease, juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM).