Ann Jarrell is a nurse at Mt. Carmel New Albany, but at 6 p.m. on a Monday night, she finds herself back in a college classroom at the Columbus College of Art and Design.
鈥淎ctually, my daughter is a student here,鈥� she says.
Despite the familial connection, she鈥檚 not there as a parent, but rather as a sort of lab rat. Jarrell鈥檚 daughter Hannah a junior taking a class dedicated to re-inventing surgical gowns for Cardinal Health.
鈥淭hey asked her to do some construction on it, and they asked her if she knew anyone in health care and here I am," she laughs. "Giving my opinion.鈥�
Hannah鈥檚 a fashion major, so focusing on things like sterility and universal sizing is new to her.
鈥淲e mostly design for like aesthetic and looks and trends and colors and seasons, and this time, it鈥檚 like, an all season thing, it鈥檚 the same color鈥攂lue鈥攕o I really had to get out of the mindset of doing stuff for aesthetic, and do it for function,鈥� Hannah says.
Her mom, and other professionals in the health field, mill about the cluttered classroom. It鈥檚 a far cry from the order of an operating room, but they find a way to simulate one.
鈥淲e ended up playing a game of operation to see how it might feel in the real world," Jarrell says. "So we were just trying to see how we could move around in them, and then give our opinion."
And the opinions abound.
鈥淲ell some of them are kind of stiff," Jarrell says. "Some of them didn鈥檛 hold well at the neck, so they could potentially fall off of staff and land on a patient. Some of them the sleeves weren鈥檛 long enough.鈥�
That was not the problem with Marshell Stokes鈥檚 design. She and teammate Elyse Applewhite created a gown with extended sleeves with thumbholes to prevent the sleeves from riding up, like the shirts some runners wear.
鈥淭he feedback we received tonight had a lot to do with the gown-glove interaction, so the sleeve that we created, surprisingly, it did not go over well," Stokes says. "But we鈥檙e taking that feedback to adjust the design."
That feedback is critical, as medical restrictions and details could escape a design student.
鈥淎 lot of the creativity that we come up with, we realize automatically doesn鈥檛 fit within the scope of what it takes to have a successful surgical gown,鈥� Stokes says.
That includes things like regulating temperature through possibly hours of surgery, and guaranteeing doctors and nurses aren鈥檛 exposed to any biological contaminants.
Surgical dress has been more the less the same since the 1970s, but instructor Matthew Mohr says that鈥檚 no reason to keep the status quo.
鈥淯nless they鈥檙e absolutely perfect, there鈥檚 room for improvement," Mohr says. "And if we can improve that experience, if we can improve the feeling that a surgeon has after working in them for four hours, then we are essentially improving the situation and improving outcomes.鈥�
That weighs heavily on students' minds as they approach the assignment.
鈥淧utting yourself in the shoes of the surgeon and putting yourself in the operating room, and truly understanding and having that empathy," Elyse Applewhite says. "And knowing that this is what people are wearing to save people鈥檚 lives. So it鈥檚 a big thing. And we鈥檙e grateful.鈥�
A representative from Cardinal Health says if the students鈥� final recommendations are cost-effective, meet medical requirements, and improve on the heating, sizing and fit issues, they鈥檒l make the changes. The students only have a few more weeks of class to finish, but Jarrell has faith.
鈥淚 can see there鈥檚 just a couple bumps in the road they鈥檙e working on," she says. "They鈥檒l get there.鈥�
