Patient Handling Sling With Perineal Access Window
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Solution Overview
Problem
Bedridden patients require immediate and regular perineal care and skin integrity assessment to prevent pressure sores and infections, but existing methods often strain caregivers and pose safety risks, especially for single caregivers, necessitating a solution that ensures safe access and handling while minimizing caregiver injury and facility liability.
Innovation Solution
A body sling with patient handling sheets, designed for use with a patient lift, allows a single caregiver to provide perineal care and skin integrity assessment by featuring a bottom sheet with lift straps and loops, a top sheet with a cut-out for access, and fabric hook and loop fastening strips, enabling safe lifting, turning, and repositioning of patients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional patient handling methods are used, then caregivers can provide perineal care and skin assessment, but multiple caregivers are required which increases physical strain and safety risks
Solution Approach 1:
The handling system is segmented into distinct functional components: a top sheet with a perineal access window for care delivery, a bottom sheet with integrated lift straps for mechanical assistance, and a patient lift device. This segmentation allows a single caregiver to operate each component independently while providing comprehensive patient care.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a patient lift as an intermediary device between the caregiver and the patient. This mechanical intermediary bears the patient's weight during repositioning and transfer operations, eliminating the need for multiple caregivers to manually support the patient while the single caregiver focuses on perineal care tasks.
2Reliability
If frequent repositioning is performed to prevent pressure sores, then skin integrity improves, but caregiver physical effort and injury risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patient lift functions as an anti-weight system, supporting the patient's body weight during repositioning operations. The lift straps and loops are configured to distribute and bear the patient's weight, allowing frequent repositioning without requiring the caregiver to exert significant physical force, thereby preventing caregiver injury while maintaining skin integrity.
3Ease of operation
If perineal access is provided through traditional sheet methods, then care can be delivered, but the caregiver must fully expose the patient which compromises modesty and increases infection risk
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the perineal access function from the entire sheet system by creating a dedicated window in the top sheet. This localized opening allows the caregiver to access only the perineal area while the rest of the patient's body remains covered by the sheets, maintaining modesty and reducing exposure-related infection risks.
Solution Approach 2:
The top sheet is designed with a specific local quality - a perineal access window positioned to provide direct access to the perineal area. This localized modification allows targeted care delivery without requiring global exposure of the patient, thereby maintaining patient dignity and reducing infection risk from unnecessary exposure.
Data Source
AI summary
A body sling with patient handling sheets allowing a single caregiver to provide perineal care and skin integrity assessment to a bedridden patient, and further providing the capability to lift, turn, and reposition the patient with the use and aid of a patient lift.