Patent Application
20120151658
The application relates generally to a medical garment, and more particularly to an adjustable medical garment with improved belt features for concealing a patient's body and providing an attractive appearance while allowing access for medical reasons.
Medical garments or gowns used by medical facilities are known, and may take a variety of forms. They may be made from a variety of materials, and are provided with various forms of securing means. It is desirable to have a medical garment that is suitable for patients of varying size and shape, yet provides adequate access for medical exams and provides a pleasing appearance to help improve a patient's mental state.
Many current medical gowns are based on nightshirts worn in hospitals in the 19th century, though the present-day versions often have an opening in the back. The gown is typically secured in the back, making it difficult for a user to secure without assistance. Such designs are also not considered attractive by most users and may serve to make a user mentally and/or physically uncomfortable during wear.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,011,172 issued 5 Dec. 1961 to Daniel Tames and titled “Surgical gown with moisture-proof conductive grounding means”, discloses a surgical gown with a central panel having a moisture-proof conductive grounding sheet secured thereto and two side panels. One side panel overlaps the other side panel when the gown is worn. A waist band for a tape or belt extends across the grounding sheet and a side panel with slits at the juncture of the central panel and one side panel and the edge of the of the other side panel to provide access to the tape for securing the gown when worn. U.S. Pat. No. 4,040,124, issued 9 Aug. 1977 to Richard L. Zoephel and titled “Hospital gown having fitting means”, discloses an adjustably-fitting hospital gown with portions of fabric coated or impregnated with cohesive-adhesive material which has affinity only to itself. This allows closure and close fitting of all areas desired to be adjustably fitted. U.S. Pat. No. 6,134,715, issued 24 Oct. 2000 to Jane L. McLennan and titled “Medical patient gown”, shows a patient gown formed from a single piece of fabric for wrapping about a patient. This gown can be worn forward or backward.
While there are a wide variety of medical gowns available, it is desirable to provide a medical garment that is attractive, yet easily secured around a patient's body to conceal the patient's body while allowing access to the body by medical personnel.
A medical garment formed of a central body section or panel and two side sections or panels with two independent belts and an inner tie for securing the garment when worn is provided. The central body panel may be worn on the back or front and may have a v-neck form. A waistband extends across the central body panel and one side panel. A first belt in the waistband is secured at the junction of the central body panel and one side panel and exits the waistband at the outer edge of the side panel. The second belt extends from the secured end of the first belt through the waistband across the central body panel exiting at the outside of the junction of the second side panel and central body panel. A first securement member positioned at the outer edge of the second panel along the position of the waistband to cooperate with a second securement member secured to the inside of the waistband between the body panel and first side panel. In exemplary embodiments, the two securement members are fixed ties, or hook and loop fasteners.
This construction allows a patient to tie the two fixed ties to secure the garment about her body with the second side panel in place and then wrap the first side panel over the second side panel and secure it by tying the first belt in the first side panel to the second belt in the waist-band exiting at the second side of the central body panel. This allows the second belt to cause the central body panel to gather about the patient's body. Passing the first belt through the waistband allows the patient to gather excess material in the first side panel and provide an attractive gown. The configuration allows a patient to secure the ties and belts of the gown at one side regardless of whether the central body panel is worn on the front or back of the patient.
The gown may be formed from a single piece of fabric, or from a single piece of fabric cut into panels to provide the separate sections or panels. In a preferred embodiment the panels are individual pieces of fabric secured together by stitches. Sleeves are formed between the central body panel and the side panels and have closeable fasteners to allow access to the patient's arms. Pockets may be provided between the panels below the waistband. Additional pockets may be provided on the central body and side panels.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved adjustable medical garment.
For a fuller understanding of the invention, reference is made to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:
A medical garment or gown 11 constructed and arranged in accordance with the invention is shown in
Gown 11 may be formed of any suitable natural or synthetic fabric material, such as, but not limited to, polyester, acrylic, polyamide or polyolefin fiber, a blend of these, or any other suitable material or combination of materials. The material may be woven, knit, non-woven or formed in any other manner. The gown 11 can be made substantially of a single piece of material or may instead be formed from separate pieces of material. The material and structure should be selected to withstand the rigors of use and multiple washings for reuse in hospitals, doctor's offices and the like.
Central body panel 12 is substantially rectangular with an upper hem or placket 12a, first side 12b and second side 12c, and a lower hem or placket 12d. First seam 16 and second seam 17 represent two outer vertical sides 12b and 12c of the rectangle. Central body panel 12 also includes a v-neck region 39 along upper hem 12a. The upper portions of sides 12b and 12c of central body panel 12 are cut to form armholes 19 and 22.
First side panel 13 and second side panel 14 are also substantially rectangular with upper inclined sections 13b and 14b. When the gown 11 is being worn, overlapped inclined sections 13b and 14b cooperatively form a v-neck 51 as shown in
Gown 11 includes a waistband 23, which is a tunnel-like area having multiple layers of material, extending across the inside of central body panel 12 and first side panel 13 between outer edge 13a of first side panel 13 and vertical side 12c of central body panel 12. Waistband 23 has a first opening 23a at outer edge 13a of first side panel 13 and a second opening 23b at second seam 17. Waistband 23 is located at a “height” (i.e., distance between the upper hem 12a and lower hem 12d) which at least roughly corresponds to an expected waist location of the patient.
A first belt 24 with a first end 24a longitudinally spaced from a second end 24b is anchored via the first end 24a at first seam 16 and at least a portion of the first belt 24 extends through waistband 23. Second end 24b of first belt 24 exits and extends from waistband 23 at outer edge 13a of first side panel 13. A second belt 26 with a first end 26a longitudinally spaced from a second end 26b is anchored via first end 26a at first seam 16 and at least a portion of the second belt 26 extends through waistband 23 across center body panel 12. Second end 26b of second belt 26 exits and extends from waistband 23 at the outside of gown 11 at second seam 17 via opening 23b in seam 17.
This belting arrangement allows first and second belts 24 and 26 to cinch or gather the material of first side panel 13 and central body panel 12 around a patient when second end 24b of first belt 24 is tied to second end 26b of second belt 26. More specifically, when tensioned, first belt 24 acts in a “drawstring” manner through interaction with waistband 23 to gather the material of first side panel 13 as second belt 26 acts similarly to gather the material of central body panel 12 when belts 24 and 26 are tied together as will be described in more detail below. This makes gown 11 adjustable as it can be used by patients of varying sizes. When two belt “ends” are described as being “tied together”, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that a portion of the belt adjacent those “ends” is involved or implicated in the tying process and that “end” is used herein, in describing a tied connection, as an indicator of the general area of the belt which is being tied.
In addition to first belt 24 and second belt 26 both fixed at seam 16, gown 11 includes a first tie 27 with a first end 27a longitudinally spaced from a second end 27b with first end 27a secured to the inside of gown 11 at first seam 16, at approximately the same height as waistband 26 in proximity to where first belt end 26a and second belt end 27a are fixedly secured in waistband 23.
A second tie 28 with a first end 28a, longitudinally spaced from a second end 28b, is secured at first end 28a to second side panel 14 at outer edge 14a at the height of waistband 23. Second ends 27b and 28b, respectively, of first and second ties 27 and 28 may be tied together to help secure the gown 11 around the patient, in cooperation with the drawstring-type cinching and securement provided by the first and second belts 24 and 26. While first and second belts 24 and 26 and first and second ties 27 and 28 are described as shown in
Gown 11, as shown in the Figures, also includes a first side pocket 32 at first seam 16 and a second side pocket 33 at second seam 17. A central body panel pocket 41 is formed on the outside surface of central body panel 12.
First sleeve 18 and second sleeve 21 are formed with a first sleeve slit and a second sleeve slit, 36 and 37, respectively, across the top of each sleeve. Each of the first and second sleeve slits 36, 37 includes a plurality of fasteners 38 therealong. Here, fasteners 38 are shown as snaps, but may be coordinating hook-and-loop fasteners (e.g., Velcro™), buttons, or any other suitable fasteners. Fasteners 38 allow ready access through the first and second sleeve slits 36 and 37 to the patient's arms by medical personnel.
When gown 11 is to be donned, the patient places one of her arms in each of first and second sleeves 18 and 21 and pulls second side panel 14 around her body. The patient then ties second end 27b of first tie 27 and second end 28b of second tie 28 together to begin to secure gown 11 about her body. Regardless of whether central body panel 12 becomes the front or back of gown 11, first and second ties 27 and 28 are secured at the patient's side. This side tying for the initial securement makes wearing gown 11 much simpler and more convenient for the patient or a caregiver than for the patient to don a gown, such as a conventional hospital gown, having a rear opening that must be tied at the patient's back. After first and second ties 27 and 28 are secured together to secure the second side panel 14 to the junction of the first side panel 13 and the center panel 12, first side panel 13 is pulled across the patient's body to cover tied first and second ties 27 and 28 and to overlap second side panel 14, then first belt 24 and second belt 26 are tied together on outside of the gown 11 and at the patient's other side, opposite tied first and second ties 27 and 28. Once first and second ties 27 and 28 and first and second belts 24 and 26 are secured together, the material of center panel 12 and first and second side panels 13 and 14 may be gathered around waistband 23 in a drawstring-like manner and arranged to provide the patient with an attractive and relatively form-fitting covering.
While aspects of the present invention have been particularly shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiment above, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, the first and second ties 27 and 28 or fasteners 127 and 128 could be omitted, with the second side panel 14 merely drawn or laid across the patient's body, to be held in place by friction with the overlapping first side panel 12. A device or method incorporating any of these features should be understood to fall under the scope of the present invention as determined based upon the claims below and any equivalents thereof.
Other aspects, objects, and advantages of the present invention can be obtained from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims.
