VIDEO: New Hope for the Hated Hospital Gown
Innovative design research takes all forms at the University of Cincinnati. That includes a recent effort by faculty and students to redesign the hated hospital gown.
Research takes all forms at the University of Cincinnati. That includes a pioneering university-business partnership model between the university and regional, national and international companies that is known as the Live Well Collaborative.
The Live Well Collaborative at UC is a unique partnership between university students and faculty and corporations seeking new product and service innovations for a target market aged 50 and over.
For instance, regional firm Hill-Rom Company of Indiana came to the Live Well studio to help the firm create better hospital gowns. The result from the UC students and faculty was a series of hospital gowns to better meet the needs of both patients and caregivers.
These gowns avoid pressure ulcers, accommodate braces and medical devices, accommodate variations in body temperature, provide pockets and coverage, and provide ease of closure. The gown series includes
- One gown for seriously ill bed ridden patients.
- Another gown for the somewhat mobile patient.
- A third gown for the fully ambulatory.
This is just one example of the research results coming out of UC's design innovation incubator.
Through the Live Well research collaborative, UC students and faculty from design, engineering, business, medicine and even anthropology have partnered with other firms. These include General Mills, Inc., Procter & Gamble Co., LPK and LG Electronics.