Goodbye, drafty backside

DETROIT – The drafty backside is finally gone, replaced with comfort, warmth and dignity in a newly designed hospital gown that blends style for the patient with clinical function for the health care team.

The new patient gown – resembling a wrap-around robe that completely closes in the back and front– is being rolled out on several inpatient floors at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. It is among the first inventions to be made public by the Henry Ford Innovation Institute in collaboration with the College for Creative Studies.

The new patient gown (left), designed by the Innovation Institute at Henry Ford Hospital in collaboration with the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, resembles a wrap-around robe that completely closes in the back and front. Different coloured snaps and stitching along the left and right sides of the gown (centre), making it easy for patients to put on. The stitching is white along the right sleeve, and dark blue along the left sleeve. The new gown in closed in the back (right) with an opening that folds over, allowing access to the patients by hospital staff.

The newly designed gown is:
? Completely closed in the back, creating more privacy for patients
? Made of a thicker, cotton/polyester blend material, which keeps patients warmer than the previous patient gowns
? Double-breasted in the front, using three snaps, instead of ties, to close the gown
? Intuitive in design, with different colored snaps and stitching along the left and right sides of the gown, making it easy for patients to put on
? Accessible for IVs and other medical lines. The health care teams say it offers them uncompromised clinical access to the patient without needing to remove the gown

“Our No. 1 goal was to close the backside of the gown with our design,” says Michael Forbes, a product designer at the Henry Ford Innovation Institute and graduate of Detroit’s College for Creative Studies (CCS).

“A simple change can have a large impact on the patients’ stay at a hospital. By creating a hospital gown that is safe, stylish and comfortable, we’ve made the patient feel more at home, like they’re wearing their own garments.”

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