General Practice surgeries in the UK fulfil a number of important roles. They are the first point of contact for patients within the local community and provide important bases for vaccination and diagnosis. GP surgeries are typically equipped with a variety of specialist medical furniture types in order to provide good care and prevent the spread of disease. Here is a very brief guide to some of the most important kinds of medical furniture that should be present in any well-equipped GP surgery. 

Curtains

Although GP surgeries do not have multi-patient wards, there are still plenty of uses for curtains and screens. Patient privacy is incredibly important, and curtains enable patients to have some degree of privacy even during examinations. Doctors and nurses may invite patients to use curtains and screens if they need to undress or if they want to have some privacy during the collection of samples. Curtains and screens are essential pieces of medical furniture in a General Practice setting. GP surgeries are required to regularly disinfect or change their curtains in order to comply with government health and safety guidelines surrounding cleanliness. For this reason, many practices make use of paper curtains that are cheap to purchase and easy to replace. 

Cabinets 

Many kinds of GP supplies are kept in medical cabinets. Cabinets that are intended for the containment of medicines need to be able to be locked and should securely fastened to a wall. Thefts of pharmaceuticals from GP surgeries in the United Kingdom are thankfully very rare. Falsified prescriptions tend to be used by large-scale thieves as opposed to grab and run attacks. Nevertheless, controlled substances must be kept under lock and key. 

Clinical Waste Bins 

All clinical waste needs to be disposed of correctly. Large-scale sharps bins are a must-have for all GP surgeries: enabling doctors and nurses to safely get rid of used hypodermic needles, scalpels, and lancets. Not all clinical waste is composed of sharps. Used bandages, gloves, masks, and scrubs also need to be put into designated medical waste bins. Unfortunately, none of this waste can be recycled. It is typically incinerated in order to reduce the risk of people coming into contact with infectious diseases.

All GP surgeries need to invest in medical waste bins and subscribe to medical waste collections on a regular basis. 

Treatment Couches 

Treatment couches are perhaps the most recognizable pieces of medical furniture in a typical GP surgery. These couches are fully adjustable: allowing a doctor or nurse to position their patient in such a way that they can be comfortably examined and treated. The most luxurious treatment couches are electrically adjected using a remote control. More basic models use pneumatic foot pumps and hand cranks. All treatment couches need to be fitted with a new disposable sheet for each new patient in order to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Treatment couches are expensive but necessary pieces of medical furniture. 

Katherine Poitras