Updated June 15, 2014.

Sometimes the most ordinary needs go unsolved because they are in fact so ordinary, no one gets excited enough to design a solution. Luckily, product design and manufacturing companies like Paladin Medical Products exist to pay attention to these ordinary, but very common problems that need solution in health care.

Paladin has solved things like catheter storage for example. And I've written about other products that manufacturers have created that are blissfully low-tech and inexpensive.

But they work, and they fill needs that the medical staff have sometimes gone decades without an elegant solution. At best, they've had to create their own "on-the-fly" solution with the materials they have at hand in their space. Sometimes this works fine, but sometimes it opens up problems for infection prevention and safety.

A heavy-duty hook for hanging lead aprons

A heavy-duty hook for hanging lead aprons is no small requirement. Lead aprons of course are quite heavy because of their lead liners. Hospital staff use them for x-ray protection.

For today's hospital that is interested in protecting their architectural investment, there's great interest in providing medical supply and device storage management methods that can locate the appropriate items in the appropriate places in the appropriate quantities, while reducing the amount of holes drilled into the walls. 

That's the idea behind the decades old invention called medical equipment rail. It's a piece of extruded aluminum that can be cut to a variety of lengths, then mounted horizontally on a wall.

 

Once that rail is mounted on the wall, there tends to be no further need to relocate the rail, thus preventing hospital walls from looking like "swiss cheese" from multiple holes that appear every time wall-mounted supplies are re-located for better workflow. It happens all the time.

On the rail however, is a different story. There, relocating medical supplies and devices becomes a safe choice, enabling the staff to instantly relocate supplies when and where they need them along the rail. The quick release brackets that can be specified by the equipment rail manufacturer attach to the back of the supplies, storage accessories, and devices, and create a quick-release functionality for staff to perform the instant relocations.

So by relocating items along the rail, a few things are prevented from happening.

1. Patient care and nursing efficiency continues by adapting to the variety of situations that can arise.
2. Medical staff do not need to call facility maintenance staff to remove the medical supplies from the wall.
3. The hospital's investment in its architecture remains protected. Fewer holes, zero exposed holes.

?There are infection prevention benefits as well.

When medical devices and supplies like hooks, paper towel holders, soap and sanitizer dispensers, sharps containers are fastened directly into the wall, they often get removed for better positioning after the initial installation. This exposes patients to a mess, and the interior of the wall, until the exposed holes are patched and painted. More work, more expense, and it prevents patient care from happening in that space while the repair work is being done. That creates potential revenue loss, as well as on-site hassles for the staff.

?But the equipment rail system can now work for lead-lined aprons. By mounting the equipment rail into the wall, and fastening the rail to the wall studs, Paladin has designed heavy-duty hooks that clamp on the rail. The hooks are strong enough to carry the weight of the lead aprons for the long-term. And the hooks can be removed from the rail in quick-release fashion, and repositioned for any reason.