Member Article

Mannequin idea targets obesity epidemic

Latest figures suggest that the UK is in the grip of an obesity epidemic. Statistics suggest a staggering 26% of men and 24% of women are obese, and 67% of men and 57% of women are now overweight.

Obesity not only has a significant impact of the health of individuals, it has serious implications for healthcare providers as they care for patients.

Chris Jarratt, short-listed for the 2015 Spark Business competition, run by Stockport Business and Innovation Centre (SBIC), hopes that his Bariquins business idea can provide a way in which safety concerns about moving and handling people classed as obese can be addressed.

Bariquins aim to produce 25-stone mannequins which will be used to train emergency personnel and healthcare workers to safely and efficiently lift obese people, reducing the risk of injury to the patient or those in attendance.

Incorrect handling of an obese person can result in musculoskeletal injuries to the handler or individual. With back injuries costing the NHS £400 million a year and the market in medical negligence claims growing year-on-year, Chris sees his idea bearing fruit physically and economically.

He says: “Global obesity isn’t going to disappear overnight, and both Governments and organisations are increasingly under pressure to reduce costs. Using a Bariquin for training has the potential to reduce staff sick leave caused by back injuries, minimise time spent attending emergency incidents due to improved training, and cut the number of compensation claims made in medical situations involving an obese person.”

The seed of Chris’s idea started to grow in 2012, while he was in his final year of a product design degree. Chris explains: “I found myself in a situation where I thought I would have to administer first aid to a man who was having breathing difficulties. He weighed around 28 stone. Fortunately, he recovered his breathing, but it made me think how do emergency personnel and healthcare workers train to lift obese people?”

Chris researched the subject and went on to design and produce a bariatric mannequin, which he later dubbed a Bariquin.

Chris believes winning the 2015 Spark Business competition and a package of support worth £15,000, including a year’s free office space at SBIC which is owned by Stockport Council and part funded by the European Regional Development Fund, will be the catalyst his fledgling business needs to maximise its potential.

He concludes: “Society needs to tackle the root causes of obesity, but that change in lifestyle and mindset is going to take generations. That leaves today’s generation with the challenge of how we deal with the problem. Bariquins offer a solution to the serious issue of how obese people can be safely lifted and helped.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by James Welton .