Autor: Johanne Jefferson

Business as usual

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We want to assure you that it is still business as usual at eakin®and that we are still making the products you rely on daily.

Managing Director, Jeremy Eakin, takes us on a factory tour to show you the changes we have put in place to create a safe environment for employees while we continue to produce and ship our products across the world.

We’re living in really challenging and interesting times around the world, as you will all well know.

A couple of days ago the headlines on the BBC news webpage was that a quarter of the world’s population was having their movements restricted due to the current Covid-19 pandemic.  Those are headlines that I never dreamt that I would see in my lifetime, and pose business challenges like we have never seen before.

But, we rise to the challenge and the challenge is to make sure our customers and our employees are safe, healthy and well supported during the challenging times.

It’s very much business as usual.  We are prioritisng our customers to  make sure that no matter what, they will continue to get their supplies as best we possibly can and we continue to manufacture full steam ahead to make sure there is no threat to that supply.

There’s not much happening in our offices but just because our offices are empty doesn’t mean to say that there is not a lot of work going on behind the scenes.

As far as possible all our staff who can work at home are doing so and very much business as usual.

For our keyworkers who we rely on to come to work each day we have really increased our hygiene and social distancing measures to make sure everyone stays safe and protected from the virus.

As you can see our warehouse has ample supplies of key raw materials.  In addition to having constructive ongoing dialogue with our major suppliers we have also proactively ensured there is 6-9 months stock of essential raw materials already safely in storage.

Purely as a precautionary measure we have increased our working hours to make sure stock is available for anyone who needs it.  But as you can see, our production lines are working as normal, manufacturing the products you rely on each day.

We continue to dispatch all your orders as normal.  We currently do not have any back orders and do not envisage that situation changing as long as everyone remains calm and reassured that we’ve got your needs covered.

The A Bigger Life community is ready and waiting for you to ask questions, get advice or just say hello and chat to other ostomates.  You can follow us on Twitter and Facebook for tips and inspiration.  Or if you need product specific advice, take a look at the help and advice section on our website, eakin.eu.  Although it might take a bit longer, you can still request sample products through the website.

Hopefully by seeing around our premises today and witnessing the busy factory, full of employees and full of products being made, packaged and orders being shipped out the door, it will give you some reassurance that it is very much business as usual despite half of our employees actually not being on site.

We’re using the best of technology to ensure you that get what you need but at the same time keeping our employees safe and protected as far as possible from the virus.

Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, keep your distance.  Contact us if there I anything we can do to support you during these challenging times.

Virtual appointments with your stoma nurse: how to prepare

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man attending virtual nurse appointment

Some clinics and hospitals are offering patients online or „virtual“ appointments so patients can stay at home during this COVID-19 pandemic.

We thought you might like some tips on how to prepare for a virtual appointment. 

Hi, I’m Louise, I’m a stoma care nurse and I wanted to have a word today about the COVID-19 pandemic, which is having a major impact on most parts of the world.

So, our hospitals are the front line and many are restricting access to their sites.

One consequence of this is that some clinics are moving to virtual appointments, using Skype, FaceTime or similar.

If you are going to have a virtual appointment with your stoma care nurse this is likely to be a first, so we felt some guidance may be appreciated.

The most important thing that you do is to treat this exactly the same way as you would with a face to face appointment.

An appointment is normally private with just you, the nurse and perhaps a very close friend or family member if you choose to bring them.

Create the same environment at home.

Take the call somewhere private with the maximum of one other person present or do it on your own if this is how you do it for a normal appointment.

An appointment is quiet with no distractions, the focus is on you.

Again, create the same environment at home, turn off the TV and the radio, don’t look at your social media and put your phone away.

So, to get the most out of the appointment, the focus needs to be on you.

If you have a laptop or a tablet use it rather than your phone, as the screen is larger and you’ll be able to see the nurse better.

The nurse may need to look at your stoma and the skin around it, so it would be great if you had your products and accessories to hand.

Also, make sure that light is good and if you can, work out in advance how you will show him or her your stoma.

Will you stand up or would it be a shot that you could sit down and you’re more comfortable and have access to your products?

Have a little think about this.

As a face to face appointment, it is a good idea to write down a list of questions to prepare yourself, like anything.

Prior to your appointment, use this time to have a think about it and then I suppose the list is to guide you to make sure you don’t forget anything.

After you’ve made these simple and practical steps, use the appointment in exactly the same way you would treat a face to face appointment.

Be open and discuss any concerns with your nurse. A virtual appointment may be the way forward,it can be convenient. Embrace it and don’t worry about it.

Best of luck.

For more advice and tips on living with a stoma, visit abiggerlife.com 

Continuing to meet your needs during Covid-19

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Your health and wellbeing during these challenging times  and that of our employees, our customers, carers and everyone else whose lives we touch around the world, is our top priority at eakin®.

As a family-run business operating internationally, we’re following all local government guidance wherever our teams are based.

During these challenging and uncertain times, please know that the entire eakin® team is working tirelessly to ensure continued product supply and support to you.

How eakin® is helping you

To meet your ongoing needs:

  • We are holding good levels of materials to manufacture the products you depend on for many months to come
  • We continue to meet the full supply requirements of all our customers across the world, working very closely with our suppliers and shipping partners
  • To ensure the ongoing well-being of our production staff to allow them to continue making your products well ahead of when you might need them Many additional precautions have been taken
  • 24/7 practical advice and support via our website www.eakin.eu
  • 24/7 access to a warm, caring, online community – ‘A Bigger Life’* www.abiggerlife.com (* sponsored by eakin®).Ostomates and carers can talk anytime, night or day and benefit from lots of great support and info.

eakin® cares

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We really care about our customers at eakin® and that’s why we do everything we can to make things better, easier and less disruptive, so that a stoma is just a small part of a bigger life.  But it doesn’t stop with our customers; we also care about the community around us and our people. 

Our community

eakin student placement roles
Our 2019/20 placement students

We are proud to support our local community through partnerships with local universities by offering placement years to students on a variety of courses.  These placements provide a nurturing and learning environment where students get a taste of working on projects in an industry setting to help prepare them for the workplace after graduating.

Supporting both local and international charities is something we encourage on a corporate and personal level.  Over the Christmas period we made a donation to Save the Children instead of sending Christmas cards, and employees added with personal donations through our Christmas Jumper Day in our offices in Northern Ireland, Japan and Netherlands.

Sampling cakes in the Comber office

During February, we enjoyed delicious home-made treats to raise money for Cancer Research on World Cancer Day 2020.  We didn’t realise there were so many talented bakers at eakin®!

foodbank logoWe don’t just enjoy the food ourselves.  Employees in Comber donated a whopping 117kg of food to a foodbank, supporting local families who are struggling financially.

Our people

Healthy bodies and minds are important, especially with the rise in mental health issues such as stress and anxiety.  Recognising how important good mental health is for everyone, we invited Aware NI along to do a workshop on Mood Matters with our employees.

eakin employees in Japan
Making sure our office in Japan get their five-a-day on Fruity Wednesday, an eakin® initiative to take a break, have a healthy snack and chat with colleagues

eakin® students takeover Instagram

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eakin student placement roles

Our current placement students took-over the Ulster University (UU) careers Instagram account this week to show what a typical day working at eakin® is like.  At eakin® placement students are an important part of the team and gain invaluable hands on experience in their chosen field, this allowed us to give local students a real feel for our business.

A core value at eakin® is to grow through fair partnerships, providing support for mutual benefit.  One of the ways we do this is through partnering with local universities to offer a placement year for 3rd year students.

The placement students work on real projects, carrying out business critical work that helps the company succeed.  But it isn’t just the company that benefits; the students gain a wide range of experience in their chosen field, giving them a strong advantage when it comes to applying for their first graduate role.

Glen is a student at Ulster University on the Interactive Multimedia course, who is with us for his placement year as our digital marketing assistant. 

“ My job is to help implement the digital marketing strategy. I get to work across a lot of areas including video, social media, design and websites.  The experience I am getting will give me a great portfolio to help kick start my career after graduation.”

This year we have also had a placement student working with us as a Product Development Engineer.  Sinead is studying Biomedical Engineering at Ulster University and is half-way through her placement year.  Sinead has been part of the Research and Development (R&D) team working on several innovation projects.

“I support both the design and mechanical teams, this can be through CAD designing, prototyping, testing etc. But most importantly learning as I go along, picking up invaluable skills that will help me in my studies and my future career.”

We are currently recruiting for our placement students for 2020-21 across four different business areas:

  • Digital marketing assistant
  • Formulation R&D
  • HR assistant
  • Product development R&D

Full details and how to apply are on our vacancies page.

If you missed it, you can watch our Instagram takeover here.

Kaj’s Story

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I spend a lot of my spare time looking after and driving classic cars so need to be able to manage my stoma easily.

I’ve had an ileostomy since 1978 due to ulcerative colitis.

After 40 years on a different brand I’m changing to eakin dot® 2-piece soft convex.

I now regularly get 5 days weartime with eakin dot® with no leaks or skin problems. It feels softer and more comfortable to wear and it sticks really well and moulds to my hernia.

I’d recommend it.

Find out more about eakin dot® 2-piece soft convex. 

Bringing Science to Life

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At eakin® we make sure any claims we make about our products are backed up by science and experience. 

Our eakin Cohesive® seals are designed to prevent and protect against leaks better than any other seal by absorbing more.

Problems can arise when your output is watery, you have skin folds or a poorly fitted appliance.  That’s where the eakin Cohesive® seals come in; they absorb the moisture and combat harmful enzymes to both prevent leaks and protect your skin. We have a team of scientists that put all our products through rigorous testing to make sure only the best performing products are available to users.

You may be aware that eakin Cohesive® seals absorb up to four times more than competitor seals, but how can you be sure?

Laboratory tests have proven that eakin Cohesive® seals absorb up to four times more than competitor seals over a period of 3 days; but can we show you this in just 100 seconds?

This video illustrates the difference in absorbency between a selection of seals and the results are clear… eakin Cohesive® seals absorb more moisture than any other seal.

Video abspielen

So what are you waiting for?  Request a sample today so you can try it for yourself.

Powered by the sun

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Solar panels on the roof of the eakin factory

Ireland is not famous for its sunshine, but it does exist and eakin® can prove it.

At eakin® the focus is not just on providing great service, quality and innovation.  We want to do that in an ethical and environmentally friendly way, being socially responsible in all that we do.

Back in 2015, eakin® installed 960 solar panels on our factory roof as part of our commitment to reduce the environmental impact of our business.  These solar panels generate just over 2MWs of electricity each year.  To give you an idea of what that looks like, since installation these panels have produced enough energy to power almost 200 homes or charge a Tesla 700 times so it can drive around the world over 8 and a half times!

Some of the energy created goes back to the grid, and the rest we use to meet some of our energy needs.

We have all heard about ‘carbon footprint’ and how important it is to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide we release into the atmosphere.  Some of you may have even planted trees to offset your own carbon footprint, especially when it comes to long haul flights.  The solar panels at eakin® off-set 13 tons each year, the equivalent to 50 one-way flights between London and Sydney.

The solar panels aren’t the only way eakin® are being ‘green’.  By the end of this year, we will have 100% LED lighting across the site, thanks to the work of our environmental committee. Our research and Development team are also looking into ways to further minimise the environmental impact of the business and our products on the world around us.

Ostomy support bears

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ostomy support bears

Here at eakin® we are proud to support Ostomy Support Bears WA, an initiative started by Australian ileostomate, Kelly Moss.  The bears are created with the aim of providing comfort to children who are undergoing stoma surgery, and also as an educational tool.  Each teddy has a stoma with a removable pouch that can be used to explain what a stoma is and how it works to young people.

It’s not just children that find comfort in the teddies, Kelly and her team make ostomy support bears for ostomates of all ages, to help give them a sense of acceptance and comfort but most of all to put a smile on their faces. Kelly came up with the idea after being given an ostomy bear herself at the age of 42.

Kelly said “I decided I wanted to make more teddy bears but I didn’t know where to start.  I put the word out on social media asking people for help and had an overwhelming response.  I now have five ladies making bears.”

stoma bears

To keep up with demand, Kelly used crowdfunding to purchase bears that the stomas and pouches are then attached to.  So far, the group have made about 400 bears, which are donated to Perth Children’s Hospital and stoma nurses across Australia to distribute.  The bears can also be purchased and shipped internationally; Kelly has already sent bears to USA, Canada, UK and South Africa from her Perth base.

Kelly relies on donations for her not for profit work, and eakin® were delighted to be able to contribute to the project through a donation of Paediatric and Neonatal bags. 

Kelly has achieved a lot in six months and is proud of the impact she is making: “I believe this has raised awareness and helped reduce any stigma attached to having an ostomy.  I’m looking forward to seeing what the future holds for this initiative and hope it continues.”

If you would like to find out more or request a bear, you can contact Kelly though her social media groups. 

Instagram: ostomysupportbears

Facebook: Ostomy support bears WA

ostomy support bears creator receiving donations
Kelly receiving the eakin® pouches from Myra Mitchell of Omnigon, our Australian partner.

Confidence for a busy lifestyle

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still image from video promoting eakin slim seals

You need to feel confident when you’ve got a busy lifestyle; to be able to go about your normal routine, visit friends, go to work, travel, without the fear of leaking.

Clare Mee gets that confidence from an eakin Cohesive SLIMS® seal.   Shortly after surgery Clare developed skin irritation, so her stoma nurse recommended an eakin® Cohesive seal.

Absorbent, mouldable and skin friendly, eakin® Cohesive seals are designed to combat common problems such as leakage and skin irritation to prevent sore skin around your stoma.  But don’t just take our word for it- find out what Clare has to say in this video.

If you would like to try an eakin® seal for yourself, you can request a sample.

Clare is a regular blogger on A Bigger Life, a web-based community for ostomates and their carers to connect with each other for support, information and encouragement.  Sign up now at ABiggerLife.com