Why wheeled #Gurneys and #HospitalBeds need redesigning
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The change is pretty simple. First, take a look at the average bed/gurney: What’s wrong?
At first glance: nothing – they do their job: frame, wheels, handles, mattress, drip holders, etc. They’re fine.
Except for one tiny detail.
We live (and, in hospitals, recover, or occasionally die) in a modern, rectilinear world. And so do gurneys. When wheeling a patient along a corridor (or sidewalk), the rectilinear, unit structure results in joins perpendicular to the direction of movement. Usually, the floor of each room will be tiled separately to the rest of the ward, each passage into a separate unit ditto. The separator could be a simple door plate / bar / threshold, or just a change from plastic to ceramic floor tiles, Elsewhere there may be cable covers. As to entering the elevator (lift)!...
The result is a series of changes in floor height, each one a jolt to the patient on the bed. Whatever it is, the jolt could be significantly decreased by staggering the wheels.
In the drawing on the left, A represents the present layout. B & C are alternatives. Which would be better (I suspect B), I leave to engineers.
Just an idea.