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Thursday July 7th, 2022

B-Secur team takes the plunge on Jersey trip

At B-Secur we’re accustomed to taking a risk and showing our fearless side when it comes to developing ground-breaking software – after all, this is what it takes to become a leading heart health technology company!

But this was taken to a new level during our recent visit to Jersey, where a morning of pier jumping was on the cards! The team took part in a range of activities, including visiting Jersey General Hospital and The Allan Lab, discussing current and upcoming research projects, but also scheduled in some time away from the office to build upon the valuable relationships we have formed over the years.

The four-day trip to the Channel Island proved invaluable for the team which consisted of Head of Algorithm Development, Jonathan Francey, Senior Clinical Manager, Holly Easlea, Senior Research Scientist, Adrian Deery, Clinical Research Lead, Stacey McKenna, Validation Lead, Jordan Diven, and Data Analyst, Naomi McCord.

Arriving in Jersey on Thursday with temperatures over the weekend reaching up to 33°C, the team immediately took advantage of escaping the Northern Irish weather, moving lots of the scheduled meetings outdoors. One very unique meeting took place on Consultant Cardiologist and B-Secur Medical Advisory Board member, Dr Andrew Mitchell’s boat as he took the team out on the water for the morning.

 

The team were also treated to ‘scrubbing in’ and attending theatre to witness some of the life changing procedures which are performed daily at Jersey General Hospital.

These included a DC Cardioversion where an electric current is administered to shock the patient’s heart back into normal sinus rhythm, followed by a Pacemaker Insertion where the pacemaker wires are fed through the vein and connected to the heart muscle to maintain a constant heart rate.

Whilst at the Jersey General Hospital, the team also took the opportunity to review B-Secur’s 2022 and 2023 Roadmaps with some of the clinical cardiology team including Associate Specialist in Cardiology and B-Secur Medical Advisory Board member, Dr Austin Gibbs, and Digital Innovation Fellow, Dr Chris Brown to discuss upcoming research opportunities.

This was followed by a tour of Jersey’s multi-million-pound, high-performance training facility, Strive. Having recently hosted some very well-known Soccer teams, Rugby teams and former gold Olympic athletes, the team were very excited to scope out the facilities for upcoming research studies.

The team made lots of time to maximise both individual and group discussions by taking walks on the beach, chatting over dinner and drinks, and were even able to squeeze in a visit with Clinical Psychologist, Dr Alessio Agostinis to discuss his upcoming research study focusing on different streams of mindfulness treatment for patients with chronic pain.

As if preparing the team for their return to Belfast, the weather turned stormy later in the weekend allowing for a beautiful send-off dinner watching the lightning storm roll in.

 

At B-Secur we constantly strive for continued learning and development and place lots of emphasis on exposing our team to situations which may spark interest and initiate conversations on the future of our company.

This trip provided many riveting discussions and allowed the team to explore ideas and concepts in much more depth than can be accommodated during a Teams meeting.

The team were extremely grateful to all the staff at Jersey General Hospital for their warm welcome and inclusion in daily activities at the hospital.

Having the opportunity to watch procedures being performed by Cardiologists in theatre was incredibly beneficial in understanding the ongoing work being done at the hospital which feeds so many aspects of our work at B-Secur.

Now it’s over to the B-Secur team to further explore the several ‘lightbulb moments’ highlighted throughout the trip.