A wireless headset system already in widespread use across NHS operating theatres is now being deployed within high-risk infectious and isolation units as hospitals seek to ‘improve team coordination’ in environments where full PPE ‘significantly restricts communication’.
Originally adopted in operating theatres, catheter laboratories, electrophysiology (EP) labs, technology from UK-based manufacturer Quail Digital assists with hands-free, real-time communication between multidisciplinary teams working across physically separated clinical areas.
The Pro11 Headset System is already in use at multiple NHS Trusts including Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust and University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust and is now being introduced into specialist infectious disease environments, where isolation protocols and protective clothing make traditional verbal communication difficult.
Healthcare teams working in these settings often rely on raised voices, repetition or physical runners between rooms - approaches that can slow workflows and increase stress during already demanding procedures.
Dr David Sweetnam, senior orthopaedic surgeon from Fortius Clinic in Marylebone, London, a private specialist orthopaedic and spine hospital in London, says that the increased but necessary use of PPE to reduce infection had created communication ‘very difficult’ with operating teams and the headset technology had improved the situation ‘dramatically’.
Mr Sweetnam said: “In the modern operating theatre, we are now wearing complete body suits, but the problem was, it was making communication with very difficult. Sound had become quite muffled, and it was only when we became introduced to the Pro11 that we got to realise there was a very solution to this problem.
“A lot of the time we're discussing what prosthesis we’re going to use during an operation, and instead of having to traditionally communicate that through a ‘runner’, someone who goes out of the theatre to get this, we're in constant touch with people in the prep room who can get hold of the equipment we need in advance of us asking. Now communication is much clearer, and as a result, the theatre efficiency has improved dramatically.”
Dr Paul Modi, consultant cardiac surgeon at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, added: “The headsets are a game changer for communication in the operating theatre. They create a calmer, more controlled and more efficient working environment, which ultimately benefits patients.”
Tom Downes, CEO of Quail Digital, said the expansion into infectious disease units reflects a broader shift in how hospitals are thinking about communication resilience.
“Healthcare teams operate in some of the most demanding communication environments anywhere. In infectious units and high-containment settings, PPE and physical separation can create significant barriers.
“When teams can communicate clearly and without friction, performance improves. Decisions are made faster; preparation happens earlier and there is less stress across the whole team. This isn’t about adding complexity - it’s about strengthening the human connection in high-pressure clinical environments.”
Mr Sweetnam feels the headset technology had significantly strengthened team cohesion and efficiency in theatre settings. He said “The headsets have significantly improved the overall efficiency of the way we work. Communication challenges - not only with assistants, but also with the scrub team and the prep room - have become much easier to manage.
“By using Pro11, people who weren’t physically in theatre felt far more connected to the procedure. It strengthened the team dynamic and reduced friction throughout the day. It’s extremely simple to use - once it’s on, you wear it for the rest of the day and hardly notice it.”
