Micro-Cosmos helps patient unwind during hospitalization

The idea of Micro-Cosmos, which originated a few years ago during the Radboudumc's health hackathon, is now being tested in several hospitals before its official launch. An interview with co-founder Eef Lamers.

The idea came about during a hackathon? Isn't this a very simple idea? 

"Yes, but it works. The problem we are trying to solve is improving the environment for patients who need to recover in the hospital. Then we came up with the Micro-Cosmos hood. You can unfold it yourself when you need to. The hood reduces external stimuli, such as sound and light. It also gives patients more privacy and a sense of security. The Micro-Cosmos can be placed behind the bed. When the patient wants it, the hood can be lowered manually. It's great that we can already do a trial run at the Radboudumc, Sint-Antonius in Nieuwegein, Isala and CWZ, even though we haven't officially launched yet. Currently we have six hoods." 

That's special, why do you think you are already getting this opportunity? 

"The problem of many patients receiving a lot of stimuli is well known. For example, many people who are admitted experience poor sleep, which can even lead to delirium in some cases. Recovery also takes longer if someone cannot rest properly. Many patients are in multi-person rooms. There are curtains. But they often don't close because the nurses have to monitor patients. They also don't reduce stimuli enough. The first feedback we have received is that people are now able to relax, and therefore need to be hospitalized for less time. We are now testing in an intensive care unit and a cardiology department, for example. In order to collect the data, it is important that a patient spends at least four days there. A nurse then checks whether someone meets the criteria to be allowed to participate in the pilot." 

What is your unique selling point? 

"Improving the patient's stay and sleep. It's nice that hospitals can rotate patients faster, but for us it's about faster recovery and patient comfort. We are also now looking at adding things to the Micro-Cosmos in the future, like a wake-up light. A good day and night rhythm is essential for a good recovery. An entertainment system could also be a possibility. We make the Micro-Cosmos all by ourselves in Arnhem, from a stainless steel frame with aluminum segments and thermoformed plastic - all according to the medical requirements and wishes." 

What are your near future plans? 

"We want to officially launch the product in March during the Health Valley Event. And after that we will continue to develop. First we want to put ourselves on the map in the Netherlands, then in Europe and of course in America. We already have the first hospital outside the Netherlands in the pocket; in March we will run a pilot at the German Charité hospital in Berlin."

Source: Innovation Origins

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