Medical Gown with Locations for Securing Medical Tubing

Abstract

A medical gown with one or more locations for secure medical tubing is described herein. In some implementations, the medical gown may include an internal band on an interior portion of the gown to store one or more medical tubes as the tubing travels from a treatment point (e.g., catheter placement site) of a patient inside the medical gown through the internal band of the medical gown to a site external to the medical gown (e.g., urinary drainage bag).

Description

BACKGROUND

Generally, while a person is in a medical facility receiving treatment they are required to wear an issued medical gown. Additionally, such person may also be receiving the treatment via various medical tubing (e.g., intravenous (IV) tubing, catheters, chest drainage tubing, etc.) In many cases, due to the movement of the patient and/or the mental state of the patient, the medical tubing may be knowingly or unknowingly removed or displaced from its intended position. This may cause significant medical complications. Accordingly, there remains a need for an improved medical gown which stores the various medical tubing and significantly decreases the chance that the medical tubing will be removed by the patient.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The use of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similar or identical components or features.

FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate an example medical gown having an internal band for securing one or more medical tubes.

FIG. 2 illustrates another example medical gown having an internal band with a plurality of access points for placement of medical tubing.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view of an internal band for securing medical tubing of varying gauges as the medical tubing passes from a location external to a medical gown toward a location on the interior of the medical gown.

FIG. 4 illustrates another example medical gown having a horizontal internal band and a plurality of internal bands for housing one or more medical tubes.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example flow diagram of a process for securing medical tubing through a gown according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example flow diagram of a process for securing internal bands housing a portion of medical tubing to an example attachment location on an interior portion of a medical gown.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This disclosure describes various implementations of a medical gown with one or more locations to secure medical tubing. In some implementations, the medical gown may be disposable or a one-time use type gown. For example, the gown may be made of polyethylene, polypropylene, propylene, nitrile, or a combination thereof. In other implementations, the gown may be washable for multiple uses. In those examples, the gown may be made of textile material such as any combination of cotton, rayon, polyester, or the like. In some implementations, the gown may repel fluids and/or have anti-static properties. In some implementations, the medical gown may be configured for use in dissipative isolation settings. The medical gown may be made in various lengths and sizes.

As described herein, the medical gown may include one or more locations for concealing one or more medical tubes used in the medical treatment of the gown wearer. For example, the medical gown may provide a hollow, horizontal internal band or belt around the waist area to house medical tubing (e.g., urinary catheter tubing, oxygen treatment tubing, IV tubing, chest drainage tubing, etc.) as the tubing runs from the patient to the treatment source (i.e., urinary drainage bag, IV infusion pump, etc.). In some implementations, the internal band may house multiple medical tubes. In some implementations, the internal band may have a plurality of access points located at various positions to allow for convenient and selective access to the medical tubing through the medical gown. In some implementations, the medical tubing may be removable from the medical gown. However, in other implementations, the medical tubing may be manufactured as part of a disposable medical gown. In this implementation, the medical gown may be package as sterile to protect the integrity of the included medical tubing.

In some implementations, the medical gown may have one or more vertical internal bands running vertically from the waist area to the neck area. In some implementations, one or more of the vertical internal bands may used in conjunction with the horizontal internal band. In other implementations, the one or more of the vertical internal bands may be used separate from the horizontal internal band. The one or more of the vertical internal bands may house various medical tubing as described above.

In some implementations, the internal band and/or sleeve (i.e., horizontal and/or vertical) may be fabricated as part of a medical gown. However, in other implementations, the internal band and/or sleeve may be configured to removably attach to an interior portion of a medical gown. The internal band and sleeve may be made of the same material as the corresponding medical gown or of other materials. In some implementations, the internal band and sleeve may be made of, for example, latex-free rubber, nylon, polyester, cotton, neoprene, or the like.

In some implementations, a non-exhaustive list of materials for which a washable, multiple-use gown may be made includes cotton, rayon, polyester, carbon or a combination thereof. In some implementations, a non-exhaustive list of materials for which a disposable gown may be made includes polyethylene, polypropylene, propylene, nitrile, or a combination thereof.

A medical gown with built-in medical tubing may be implemented in many ways. Example implementations are provided below with reference to the figures.

Example Medical Gown

FIGS. 1A and 1B show a front view and a back view respectively of an example medical gown 100. As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the example medical gown 100 includes an opening 102 on the back on the gown 100. In some implementations, the opening may be on the front or either side of the gown 100. In some implementations, medical gown 100 may include a plurality of closure mechanisms shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B as ties 104(1)-(3). In other implementations, any number of closure mechanisms may be used to close and secure the medical gown to the user. In addition, closure mechanisms may be implemented with a hook-and-loop type fastener, buttons, zippers, adhesives, or the like. It is also noted that medical gown may be configured in any color and in any number of sizes and lengths to accommodate user of all sizes. Furthermore, medical gown 100 may be configured with any suitable sleeve length.

Medical gown 100 may also include an internal band 106 on an interior portion of a medical gown 100. In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be manufactured as a part of the medical gown 100. For example, the internal band 106 may be made of the same material as the medical gown 100. However, in other implementations, the internal band may be removable from the medical gown 100 and/or made from a different material than the medical gown 100. The geometry of internal band 106 is shown in FIG. 1 as generally rectangular; however, in other implementations, internal band 106 (or any other internal band described herein) may be any other suitable geometry (e.g., any quadrilateral, ovoid, circular, or the like).

Internal band 106 may be a hollow sleeve shaped to house medical tubing of various sizes. In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be configured to house medical tubing of various gauges. In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be configured to house medical tubing having an external diameter of at least 0.005 inch, at least 0.01 inch, at least 0.1 inch, 0.5 inch, or at least 1.0 inch. In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be configured to house medical tubing having an external diameter no greater than 1.0 inch, no greater than 0.5 inch, no greater than 0.1 inch, no greater than 0.01 inch, or no greater than 0.001 inch. In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be configured to house medical tubing having an external diameter from about 0.005 inch to about 1 inch.; from about 0.1 inch to about 0.5 inch, or from about 0.184 inch to about 0.26 inch.

In some implementations, the internal band 106 may be configured to house more than one medical tube. For example, the internal band 106 may house catheter tubing with a large diameter and IV tubing with a smaller diameter. However, any number of medical tubing combinations housed in the internal band 106 are envisioned. In some implementations, the medical gown 100 may include an internal pocket or other features for securing excess medical tubing.

In some implementations, internal band 106 may include various access points 108(1) and 108(2), each access point may provide an entry and/or exit location for the medical tubing. FIGS. 1A and 1B show two access points; however, as described in later FIGS., the internal band may include any number of access points. In some implementations, the access points 108(1) and/or 108(2) may allow a user to place medical tubing into the hollow portion of the internal band 106 or may allow a user to remove a portion of the medical tubing from the internal band 106. For example, the access points may allow a nurse to feed a portion of medical tubing into the hollow portion of the internal band from the outside of the medical gown and once the medical tubing reaches a preferred exit point within the internal band the nurse may remove a portion of medical tubing inside the medical gown. In this example, the medical tubing may run from a treatment point (e.g., catheter placement site) of a patient inside the medical gown through the internal band of the medical gown to a site external to the medical gown (e.g., urinary drainage bag). Since the medical tubing is located within the internal band (i.e., inside the medical gown) the chance of the medical tubing catching and/or snagging a surface and causing unintentional removal of the medical tubing placement is reduced.

In some implementations, each access point of the internal band 106 may include a plurality of holes. In some implementations, each of the holes may be a same size; however, in other implementations, each of the holes may be different sizes. For example, one hole at an access point may be configured with a larger diameter to allow passage of catheter tubing, while another hole at the same access point may be configured with a smaller diameter to allow passage of oxygen treatment tubing.

In some implementations, the medical tubing may be placed with and/or removed from the internal band of medical gown 100 by a user. In other implementations as described below, the medical tubing may be manufactured as a non-removable portion of the medical gown.

FIG. 2 shows another example medical gown 200 with an internal band 202. As mentioned above, internal band 202 may include a plurality of access points 204(1)-(5) where each access point may allow a user to customize the placement of medical tubing with the interior portion of the internal band 202. In some implementations, medical tubing 206, prior to interacting with the gown wearer, may be fed through access point 204(1) to the interior portion of the internal band 202. In some implementations, the medical tubing 206 may be further fed through the hollow interior portion of internal band 202 until an end of the medical tubing reaches another suitable access point. As shown in FIG. 2, the medical tubing may be fed until an end of the medical tubing reaches another desired access point. In some implementations, the medical tubing 206 may be removed from the internal band 202 at access point 204(3) in order for the medical tubing to interact with a site on a patient (e.g., catheter placement site). The direction the tubing is fed through the access points as described in not intended to be a limitation. In some implementations, the medical tubing may be fed from inside the medical gown to outside the medical gown.

The length of the medical tubing illustrated in FIG. 2 is reduced for ease of illustration. However, it is noted that the medical tubing may be any suitable length to accommodate any medical tubing use.

FIG. 3 shows an exploded view of an example internal band 300 within an opened medical gown 302. As illustrated, medical gown 302 is opened to expose an interior portion 304. In some implementations, internal band 300 may be located on the interior portion 304 of medical gown 302. For example, the internal band 300 may be located on the interior portion 304 at a waist area of a medical gown wearer. In some implementations, medical gown 302 may include a plurality of seams 306(1)-(M) configured to hold together a plurality of portions of medical gown 302. The position of the plurality of seams 306(1)-(M) as illustrated in FIG. 3 is but one example of a plurality of positions for the seams of a medical gown. In other implementations, the plurality of seams may be located at any other suitable position in order to hold various portions of a medical gown together.

As described above, the internal band 300 may be configured to secure one or more medical tubes 308(1) and 308(2) as each of the tubes passes from a location on the gown wearer to location external to the medical gown 302. In some implementations, the internal band 300 may be composed of elastic material (e.g., polyurethane-polyurea copolymer, polyurethane, cotton, wool, nylon, polyester, polypropylene, etc.) in order to secure the medical tubing placed within the hollow interior portion of internal band. In other implementations, the internal band 300 may be composed of cotton, nylon, polyester, neoprene, or any combination thereof. In some implementations, the internal band 300 may be removably affixed to medical gown 302. In some implementations, the internal band 300 may be secured to the medical gown by one or more hook-and-loop type fasteners, snaps, buttons, zippers, etc. In other implementations, the internal band 300 may be permanently affixed to medical gown 302 by stitching, fabric adhesives, fusible webs, or the like.

FIG. 3 further illustrates access points 310(1)-(4). Each access point may provide an entry and/or exit from the internal band 300 for the medical tubing 308(1) or 308(2). FIG. 3 illustrates four access points; however, in other implementations, internal band 300 may have any number of access points similar to those described above with regard to FIG. 2. In some implementations, access points 310(1) and 310(3) may provide an area where medical tubing 308(1) and 308(2) may be placed within the internal band 300 from a location outside the medical gown 302. In some implementations, access points 310(2) and 310(4) may provide an area where medical tubing 308(1) and 308(2) may exit the internal band 300 to a location inside the medical gown 302.

In some implementations, each access point 310(1)-(4) may be reinforced with a double-stitched seam to protect the access point from wear as the medical tubing is placed within the internal band 300. In some implementations, each access point 310(1)-(4) may be supplemented with an additional material to reinforce the integrity of the access point 310(1)-(4). For example, each access point may be composed of or lined with nylon, high-density polyethylene (“HDPE”) or polytetrafluoroethylene (“PTFE”) to reduce friction between each access point and an inserted medical tube. In some implementations, each access point 310(1)-(4) may be reinforced with plastic or a metal grommet.

FIG. 3 illustrates that access points 310(1) and 310(2) may be larger than access point 310(3) and 310(4) in order to accommodate a corresponding size of medical tubing interacting with each access point. In other implementations, the size may vary to accommodate any size medical tubing.

In some implementations, medical gown 302 may be a multiple use gown. In those implementations, the medical gown may be washable. In some implementations, the medical tubing may 308(1) and 308(2) may be removable from the internal band 300 in preparation for washing. New sterile medical tubing may be used with medical gown 302 once the gown is washed. As described above with regard to FIG. 1, the internal band of the multiple use medical gown may be configured to house one or more medical tubes of various gauges and lengths.

In some implementations, the multiple use gowns may be configured with an attachment area for a plurality of interchangeable internal bands. In some implementations, the attachment area may be configured with a hook-and-loop type fastener to secure an interchangeable internal band to the interior of the multiple use gown. In some implementations, each interchangeable internal band may be configured to accommodate a specific medical treatment, a specific medical tubing configuration, and/or patient size.

In other implementations, medical gown 302 may be a single use/disposable gown. In such implementations, the disposable medical gown may be composed of the materials as described above. In some implementations, the disposable medical gown may have medical tubing that is fixed within the internal band. In some implementations, the disposable medical gown with fixed medical tubing may be stored in a sterile package. In other implementation, the portions of the medical tubing extending from the internal band of the disposable medical gown may be stored in a sterile package.

In some implementations, the disposable medical gown may be configured with any number (e.g., one, two, three, etc.) of medical tube built-in to the internal band and/or medical tubing of any size (e.g., for IV therapy, for urine catheter clearance, etc.). In some implementations, the disposable medical gown may be configured for a specific medical condition/circumstance. For example, the disposable gown may include a specific catheter tubing diameter within the internal band and where the access point exits the internal band at a midline region of the medical gown so the medical tugging can interact with a urinary catheter on a patient.

Alternative Example of Medical Gown

FIG. 4. illustrates an alternative example medical gown 400 with a complex of internal bands. As described above, medical gown 400 includes a horizontal internal band 402 with a plurality of access point for insertion of medical tubing across the waist area of medical gown 400. In some implementations, medical gown may also include one or more vertical internal bands such as one or both of vertical internal bands 404(1) and 404(2). Internal bands 404(1) and 404(2) may be configured similar to any internal band described above. In some implementations not illustrated, the medical gown may be configured with a plurality of locations on an interior surface for placement of one or more internal bands. The plurality of locations on the interior surface of the medical gown for placement of an internal band may horizontal and/or vertical as shown in FIG. 4, however, in other implementations, the locations for placement of an internal band may run diagonal.

In some implementations, the hollow internal portion of each vertical internal bands 404(1) and 404(2) may be connected to the hollow internal portions of horizontal internal band 402. However, in other implementations, each vertical internal bands 404(1) and 404(2) may be connected to the horizontal internal band 402.

Each vertical internal bands is illustrated with a plurality of access point 406(1)-(6). Medical gown 400 may be configured with a fewer number or a greater number of access points. Each access point 406(1)-(6) may be configured similar to any access points described above. In some implementations, the position of access points 406(1)-(6) may allow medical gown 400 to be used in conjunction with additional medical treatments. For example, the location of access points 406(2) and 406(5) substantially under the sleeve of medical gown 400 may protect medical tubing originating at a central venous access device, central venous catheter or peripherally inserted central catheter. In another example, the location of access points 406(3) and 406(4) substantially near the collar of medical gown 400 may protect medical tubing providing oxygen treatment to a patient.

As described above, medical tubing may be fed through one or more access points 406(1)-(6) to run from a treatment point (e.g., nasal cannula) of a patient through one or more internal bands of the medical gown to a site external to the medical gown (e.g., oxygen gas supply source).

Example Processes

FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 illustrates example processes 500 and 600, respectively. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 illustrate example processes for implementing the techniques described above of securing medical tubing through an internal band on the interior surface of a medical gown. The order in which the operations are described in both FIGS. 5 and 6, is not intended to be construed as a limitation, and any number of the described operations can be combined in any order and/or in parallel to implement the process.

FIG. 5 shows the process 500, at 502, at least a portion of medical tubing may be inserted into an internal band on medical gown through one of a plurality of access points. In the context with reference to FIG. 4, at least a portion of a catheter tube may be inserted into access point 406(1) of internal band 402.

At 504, the portion of medical tubing may be fed through a hollow portion of the internal band on the medical gown. Continuing the example above, the catheter tube may be horizontally or vertically pushed through the hollow portion on the interior of the internal band.

At 506, the portion of medical tubing may be removed from the hollow portion of the internal band through another of the plurality of access points. For example, the catheter tube may be removed from the hollow portion of the internal band at access point 406(6) while an adjacent portion of the medical tubing remains in the hollow portion of the internal band.

At 508, a first of the portion of medical tubing may be attached to a treatment location of the medical gown wearer at a location on the interior of the medical gown. For example, the catheter tube removed at step 506 may be attached to a urinary catheter site on a patient wearing the medical gown.

At 510, a second end of the portion of medical tubing may be attached to a treatment source at a location on the exterior of the medical gown. For example, the opposite end of the catheter tube attached at 508 may be attached to a catheter urinary drainage container.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example process for implementing the techniques described above of securing one of a plurality of internal bands configured to house a portion of medical tubing to one of a plurality of attachment location on an interior portion of a medical gown.

At 602, the process 600 allows selection of one of a plurality of attachment locations on an interior surface of a medical gown for removable coupling of a plurality of internal bands. In the context of FIG. 4., the selection of the attachment location may be a selection of horizontal area across the waist area of gown 400 or the selection of a vertical area running from the collar to the waist are of gown 400.

At 604, one of the plurality of internal bands may be selected, where each internal band may be configured to secure one or more portions of medical tubing. For example, each internal band may be custom to a specific medical need. That is, one internal band may be configured to hold one or more catheter tubes, while another internal band may be configured to hold one or more IV and/or oxygen supply tubes.

At 606, the selected internal band from 604 may be attached to the selected one of the plurality of attachment location on the interior surface of the medical gown from 602. For example, if the selected internal band is configured to hold one or more catheter tubes it may be attached to a horizontal across the waist area of a medical gown.

At 608, a first end of one of the one or more portions of medical tubing secured in the selected internal band may be affixed to a treatment location at an interior medical gown location. For example, a first end of the medical tubing may be affixed to a urinary catheter site on a patient wearing the medical gown.

At 610, a second opposite end of the one of the one or more portions of medical tubing secured in the selected internal band may be affixed to a treatment source at an exterior medical gown location. In some implementations, the second opposite end may be fed through an access point on the medical gown to reach from the interior medical gown location to the exterior medical gown location. Continuing the example above, the second end of the medical tubing may be affixed to a catheter urinary drainage container.

CONCLUSION

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A medical gown comprising:

a gown body having one or more closure mechanisms to secure the medical gown to a user;

at least one internal band coupled to an interior portion of the gown body, the internal band comprising: a hollow sleeve configured to house at least a portion of one or more medical tubing; and one or more access points positioned on the internal band configured to allow access to the portion of medical tubing.

2. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more closure mechanisms comprise at least one of a tie, a hook-and-loop type fastener, a plurality of buttons, a zipper, an adhesive, or a combination thereof.

3. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the internal band is attached along a waist area of an interior portion of the gown body.

4. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the portion of medical tubing housed within the hollow sleeve of the internal band comprises at least one of a urinary catheter tube, an oxygen treatment tube, an intravenous therapy tube, or a chest drainage tube.

5. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more access points are positioned at each end of the internal band and wherein one of the one or more access points is configured to allow the portion of medical tubing to enter the hollow sleeve of the internal band from a location external to the gown body and another of the one or more access points positioned at the distal end of the internal band is configured to allow the portion of medical tubing to exit the hollow sleeve of the internal band to a location internal to the gown body.

6. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the medical gown is disposable for a one time use.

7. The medical gown as recited in claim 1, wherein the medical gown is washable for multiple uses.

8. A method of securing medical tubing through a gown, the method comprising:

inserting a portion of medical tubing into an internal band on the gown through one of a plurality of access points, wherein the internal band is substantially located across a waist area of the gown and comprises a hollow portion to house the portion of medical tubing;

feeding the portion of medical tubing through the hollow portion of the internal band on the gown; and

removing the portion of medical tubing from the internal band on the gown through another of the plurality of access points.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the internal band comprises an elastic material to secure the portion of medical tubing fed through the hollow portion of the internal band on the gown.

10. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the plurality of access points are positioned at least at each end of the internal band on the gown.

11. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the hollow portion of the internal band is configured to hold a plurality of portions of a same or different medical tubing.

12. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

attaching at an interior gown location an end of the portion of medical tubing to a treatment location of the gown wearer; and

attaching at an exterior gown location an other end of the portion of medical tubing to a treatment source.

13. A system for securing medical tubing, the system comprising:

a medical gown comprising: a body portion configured to surround a section of a gown wearer, the body portion having a plurality of attachment locations on an interior surface;

a plurality of internal bands configured to removably couple to the plurality of attachment locations on an interior surface of the body portion of the medical gown, each internal band comprising: a hollow portion configured to secure one or more portions of medical tubing; and two or more access points configured to provide access to the hollow portion.

14. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein a position of the two or more access points on each of the plurality of internal bands are configured to accommodate a specific medical treatment.

15. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the plurality of internal bands are configured to removably couple to the plurality of attachment locations interior surface of the body portion by one or more hook-and-loop type fasteners.

16. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the plurality of attachment locations on the interior surface of the body portion comprises at least one of a horizontal anterior portion or a vertical anterior portion of the body portion of the medical gown.

17. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the hollow portion of each internal band comprises an elastic material to secure the one or more portions of medical tubing.

18. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein at least one of the two or more access points is positioned at an end of the internal band.

19. The system as recited in claim 13, the medical gown further comprising one or more openings corresponding a position of the two or more access points of each internal band and wherein the hollow portion of each of the plurality of internal bands is further configured to secure one of the one or more portions of medical tubing by holding a portion of medical tubing running from an exterior medical gown location through one of the one or more opening on the medical gown through a corresponding access point into the hollow portion of the internal band while exiting the hollow portion of the internal band at another access point toward an interior gown location.

20. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the medical gown is washable for multiple uses and each of the plurality of internal bands are disposable for a single use.