Medical Gown

Abstract

A medical gown has a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at a front side of the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of the gown. Another medical gown has a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims benefit of United States Provisional Application No. 61/690,730 filed Jul. 5, 2012 by Tommarello et al. for “Passive compliant medical gown—PCMG, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present disclosure are in the technical field of medical gowns, and include a disposable medical gown and a method of making a medical gown.

Gowns are commonly worn by medical personnel to protect themselves and their clothing from contamination by bodily fluids, pathogens, and the like when giving treatment to patients. There are two types of disposable medical gowns in common use.

One type is an open-backed “step-in style” gown, which is easy to don, but must be secured with ties both at the waist and at the neck. Securing the tie at the back of the neck is not always easy without assistance, and if the neck is not properly covered then the wearer may not be adequately protected. Because the gown opens at the back, the waist tie is typically attached at the front. The waist tie may fasten in the back, which is not always easy without assistance. Alternatively, each end of the tie may pass right round the wearer's body and the ties are then fastened in the front, which requires long ties which present a tripping hazard if they are not fastened immediately after the gown is donned.

The other type is a “poncho-style” gown that drops on over the wearer's head. That is not as easy to don, and in particular is not easy to remove, especially when the outside is contaminated. This style has the advantage that it does not need fastening in order to provide adequate neck coverage. A waist tie may be provided in order to gather the waist in when the gown is being worn by a person smaller than the maximum size that the gown can fit.

It is desired to provide a gown that is easy to don and remove, reliably provides proper coverage for the wearer, and is easy and economical to manufacture in quantity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a medical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at a front side of the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of the gown.

The gown may have a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of gown to a position facing the point of the neck opening.

According to another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a medical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

The position to which the slit at the rear side extends may be not more than 6 inches from the neck opening.

The gown may comprise a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleeve panels being joined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels being seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the body panel being seamed at side edges below the sleeves to form a body.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method of making a medical gown, comprising: forming a body panel with a central neck opening and with a slit extending from one end to a point short of the neck opening; attaching two sleeve panels to the body panel on either side of the neck opening; folding the sleeve and body panels across the middle to form a top edge of the gown; seaming edges of the sleeve panels opposite the top edge to form sleeves; and seaming side edges of the body panel to form a body.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method of removing a medical gown as mentioned above, comprising parting the material of the gown from the slit to the neck opening.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention may be more apparent from the following more particular description of embodiments thereof, presented in conjunction with the following drawings. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a gown according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the gown shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the gown shown in FIG. 1 in a partly assembled state.

FIG. 4 is a rear view similar to FIG. 2 of an alternative form of gown.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A better understanding of various features and advantages of the present methods and devices may be obtained by reference to the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments of the invention and accompanying drawings. Although these drawings depict embodiments of the contemplated methods and devices, they should not be construed as foreclosing alternative or equivalent embodiments apparent to those of ordinary skill in the subject art.

Referring to the drawings, and initially to FIGS. 1 and 2, one form of disposable medical gown indicated generally by the reference numeral 10 comprises a body 12, two sleeves 14, and a waist tie 16. The body 12 and sleeves 14 are made of any ultrasonically bondable medical grade nonwoven material selected to provide the level of protection required for the specific use. The material may be chosen to comply with United States Food & Drug Administration or other applicable regulations or specifications. The material may be 11 gsm polypropylene or other suitable lightweight, impervious material, depending on the level of protection required for a specific use.

The body 12 and sleeves 14 are folded at the top, bonded together at the seams 18 where the sleeves 14 meet the body 12, and bonded closed along the undersides 20 of the sleeves 14 and down the sides 22 of the body 12 below the sleeves 14. The sleeves may end in elastic cuffs 40, formed by strips of elastic material bonded to the material of the sleeves 14. At the center of the top of the body is a teardrop-shaped head opening 24, formed by approximately a semicircle 26 to the front, and a triangle 28 to the rear. The rear of the gown is slit centrally. The slit 30 extends from the bottom hem 32 to a point 34 a short distance below the tip 36 of the triangular part 28 of the head opening 24, leaving a tab 38 joining the two sides of the back of the gown between the points 34 and 36.

The waist tie 16 is bonded across the front of the body 12 of the gown 10, and may be formed from a strip of the same material from which the gown body 12 is made.

In order to put the gown 10 on, the wearer opens the back slit 30, and passes the tab 38 over his or her head, and puts his or her head through the head opening 24 and puts his or her arms through the sleeves 14. Because of the back slit 30 and the teardrop head opening 24, the gown is much easier to put on than a conventional poncho-style gown. Because of the teardrop shape of the head opening 24, higher at the front than at the back, the wearer's front is well protected against contamination, without the wearer having to manually fasten a neck tie. The teardrop head opening 24 allows a larger aperture than a conventional poncho gown with the same frontal neck coverage. The frontal coverage of the gown is more critical than the back, both by function and regulation, so the larger exposure at the back of the neck form the triangular part 28 of the opening 24 is acceptable.

The wearer then stretches the ends of the waist tie 16 bonded to the back panel of the gown round the waist, and ties them at the front.

In order to remove the gown 10, the wearer unties the waist tie 16, breaks the tab 38, and removes the gown to the front, like a conventional step-in style gown.

As an example of suitable dimensions, for an “adult large” size gown 10, which will in practice fit normal human adults at least from medium through XL, the body 12 may be 31″ wide and 48″ long when laid flat. The sleeves 14 may be 20″ long (giving the garment a span of 71″ from wrist to wrist) and may be tapered from 12″ wide at the base 18 to 4″ wide at the wrist openings. The circular part 26 of the neck opening 24 may be 6″ in diameter, and the triangular part 28 may extend to 9″ below the top of the body 12. The tab should be formed so as to be strong enough to maintain an attachment of the upper portions of the body panels 12 when the gown is pulled onto the user, yet weak enough that it can be readily torn or severed when removing the gown. In one embodiment, the tab 38 may be about 2″ wide between the points 34 and 36 in FIG. 2, although that width can vary depending on the material used for the gown 10.

Referring now also to FIG. 3, in one method of manufacturing the gown 10, a panel of material 50 twice as long as the body 12, and as wide as the body or slightly wider, is provided for the body 12. The panel 50 may be rectangular, and may be provided from a roll. The roll may be wider than the body 12, for example, a standard 36″ wide roll, in which case a 1″ strip may be cut from one side to form the waist tie 16. The teardrop-shaped head opening 24 and the back slit 30 are cut through the strip 50. In large volume production, all these cuts may be made in a single pass from the roll through a rotary cutter.

Two separate panels 52 are provided for the sleeves 14, and are attached to the body panel 50 at the seams 18. For large volume production, the sleeve panels 52 may be fed in sideways from another roll of material. The seams 18 may be formed by ultrasonic bonding. The waist tie 16 is bonded across the front of the body panel 50. Strips of elastic 56 may be ultrasonically bonded or otherwise attached along outer edges of the sleeve panels 54 to form elastic cuffs 40.

The assembled panels 50 and 52 are then folded so that the front lies on top of the back. The underarm seams 20 and body side seams 22 are then bonded. The underarm seams 20 are positioned to form the tapered shape of the finished sleeves 14 and the waste material outside the seams is cut away. The sides of the gown body 12 can similarly be tapered at seams 22.

All the offcuts are then collected and sent back to the supplier of the material, to be melted down and recycled.

The completed gowns 10 are then packaged for delivery to the customer. In an embodiment, the gowns are folded, interleaved, and packed in a shrink-wrapped package with a perforated line that can be torn open, similarly to facial tissue. Thus, when one gown is removed from the package, the first fold of the next gown is drawn out, ready to be taken quickly when it is needed, but the rest of the gowns remain clean within the package.

Referring now also to FIG. 4, a second form of gown indicated generally by the reference numeral 60 is similar to the gown shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, except that the waist tie 16 is replaced by a waist tie 62 of elastic material. One suitable material is a tubular knitted elastic manufactured of polyester and spandex, normally used for surgical face mask ear loops. Such a material is commercially available from Rhode Island Textiles and other suppliers. The tie 62 is ultrasonically bonded to one back panel of the gown so that the relaxed length is shorter than the gown and eliminates or greatly reduces the above-mentioned tripping hazard. The stretched length is long enough to tie around an extra-large size person.

As an example of suitable dimensions for an “adult large” size gown 60, the waist tie 62 has an unstretched length of 26 inches, with a middle section 64 approximately 1″ long bonded to the body of the gown 60 and sections 66, 68, each approximately 12½″ long hanging free at each side of the bonded section 64. The middle section 64 may be bonded to the gown approximately midway between the back slit 30 and one side seam 22, and approximately 21″ below the top fold 54, so that the loose ends are about 14″ above the bottom hem 32 of the gown 60. The suggested polyester/spandex material can be stretched from 26″ to at least 58″ with a tension of less than 1.5 pounds. That is sufficient to pass round an Extra Large waist (42″ to 44″) with sufficient extra length to tie a knot in without difficulty.

The gown 60 may be made, donned, and removed by processes generally similar to those described above for the gown 10 of FIGS. 1 to 3.

While the foregoing written description of the invention enables one of ordinary skill to make and use what is considered presently to be the best mode thereof, those of ordinary skill will understand and appreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents of the specific embodiment, method, and examples herein. The invention should therefore not be limited by the above described embodiment, method, and examples, but by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing specification, as indicating the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A medical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at a front side of the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of the gown.

2. A medical gown according to claim 1, having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a position facing the point of the neck opening.

3. A medical gown according to claim 1, wherein said position to which the slit at the rear side extends is not more than 6 inches from the neck opening.

4. A medical gown according to claim 1, comprising a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleeve panels joined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the body panel seamed at side edges below the sleeves to form a body.

5. A medical gown according to claim 1, further comprising a waist tie of elastic material bonded to a body of the gown at a middle portion of the waist tie and having free end portions at both sides of the middle portion, wherein the free end portions in an unstretched condition are shorter than the distance from the middle portion to a bottom edge of the gown, and wherein the waist tie is elastically stretchable to a length greater than a waist circumference of a largest intended wearer of the gown.

6. A medical gown comprising:

a body having a bottom edge; and

a waist tie of elastic material bonded to the body at a middle portion of the waist tie and having free end portions at both sides of the middle portion;

wherein the free end portions of the waist tie in an unstretched condition are shorter than the distance from the middle portion to the bottom edge of the gown, and

wherein the waist tie is elastically stretchable to a length greater than a waist circumference of a largest intended wearer of the gown.

7. A medical gown according to claim 6, having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the body of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

8. A medical gown according to claim 7, wherein the waist tie is bonded to the rear side of the gown laterally offset from the slit.

9. A medical gown according to claim 7, wherein said point to which the slit at the rear side extends is not more than 6 inches from the neck opening.

10. A medical gown according to claim 6, comprising a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleeve panels joined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the body panel seamed at side edges below the sleeves to form said body.

11. A medical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

12. A medical gown according to claim 11, wherein said point to which the slit at the rear side extends is not more than 6 inches from the neck opening.

13. A medical gown according to claim 11, comprising a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleeve panels joined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the body panel seamed at side edges below the sleeves to form a body.

14. A method of making a medical gown, comprising:

forming a body panel with a central neck opening and with a slit extending from one end to a point short of the neck opening;

attaching two sleeve panels to the body panel on either side of the neck opening;

folding the sleeve and body panels across the middle to form a top edge of the gown;

seaming edges of the sleeve panels opposite the top edge to form sleeves; and

seaming side edges of the body panel to form a body.

15. A method of removing a medical gown according to claim 11, comprising parting the material of the gown from the slit to the neck opening.