Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust (GSTFT) in London, England will conduct a pilot project this autumn using drones to fly blood samples across the city. The goal is to drastically speed up the time it takes to move blood from major hospitals to labs for analysis.
“The drone pilot combines two of our key priorities – providing the best possible patient care and improving sustainability,” said Professor Ian Abbs, chief executive at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust. “We are proud to be the first trust in London to trial this innovative approach to help speed up blood sample analysis for our most urgent cases.”
Typically, moving samples between Guy’s Hospital and the lab at St Thomas’ Hospital takes more than half an hour by road- yet the same journey can be done in less than two minutes by drone, while also being more environmentally friendly.
GSTFT is working with Wing – the drone delivery arm of Google parent Alphabet – and Apian – the developer of an application programming interface (API) for medical logistics – on the pilot. The U.K.’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has approved an airspace corridor between the hospitals and will regulate the trial. Wing’s drones will transfer samples on demand, flying between the two hospitals at over 60 mph (~96.5 kmh) and 200 feet (~ 61 meters) in the air. According to Wing, this altitude is sufficient for the drones’ buzzing to blend into the city’s soundscape. The aircraft can tolerate moderate rain and wind. According to Appian, they will carry about 2.2 pounds (~1 kilo). The drones are largely automated and will follow predetermined routes overseen by a remote pilot. Flights will take place during daytime hours from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time, Monday through Friday, with no more than 10 trips per day. The drones are equipped with low-resolution cameras, but no live feed is available, even for its own pilots.
“Drones can increase the responsiveness and resilience of healthcare logistics, allowing clinicians to be more productive and patients to get the care they need sooner,” said Dr. Hammad Jeilani, co-founder of Apian.