Fecal management system (FMS)
Geriatric patients need an easy, hygienic and most importantly, a dignified way of managing their waste while in the ICU. In a massive country like India both financial and manpower resources are scarce. Therefore, the solution had to be viable at the system level for the patient and the medical staff alike. What works in India can easily work at scale globally.
Arriving at the right problems
Understand and prioritize the needs of different stakeholders including hygiene, ease of use, patient comfort and dignity preservation
Study different need scenarios like unconscious state, pre-post surgery, immobility, ICU state etc. Observing other challenges in these environments like social stigmas, affordability and staff skills
Understanding all stakeholders
Deep dive into each stakeholder’s challenges and ideal experiences
Nurse: Distressing experience with odor and multiple times a day, gender stigma, caste issues, laborious exercise, time management, personal hygiene
Doctor: Difficulty in assessing and ensuring constant hygiene
Patient: Need for comfort and dignity, lower dependency on staff availability
Family: Dignity challenges, affordability, at home care
User journey and opportunities for innovation
Mapping the typical user journey map to find opportunities of design intervention. We discovered opportunities in the following areas:
- Costing of the product key and scope of designing for re-use
- Staff learning curve and language barrier with instructions
- Sampling and ensuring hygienic cycles
- Contactless dignified solution
Market leader studies
Deep diving and understanding the pro's and con's of different solution types eg: Catheter and pouch type v/s Diaper v/s Adhesive cups etc. Assessment was done considering all aspects like effectiveness, ease of use, cost, training need etc.
Concept design and prototype cycles
More than 4 cycles of design and prototype were done across a few months. It included initial DIY models with plastic bags and mashed potato to do a proof of concept. Moving forward to more matured design and more accurate prototypes in vacuum casting with Poly urethane material. Then arriving at the final design in silicone and special dermal adhesion stickers etc (confidential)
Design iterations
Each prototype was studied, lessons learnt were recorded that helped improve to the next prototype. Final concept design, field trials on actual patients, recordings and other details of the project can not be disclosed
