Design Considerations of the Zaky®
For the Zaky to be safe, useful, and admitted in very controlled environments in hospitals (at the NICU, PICU, etc), several attributes had to be considered for the design:
- Inert to bodily fluids and medicine spilled on the item
- Fully Washable without disassembly
- Flexible to contour the surface on which it is positioned
- Durable (not disposable) and may leave the hospital with the patient to assist on transition and at home
- Inability to be heated in extreme to prevent burns – can be warmed in the towel warmer if desired
- Transportable so that it can go with the patient if he/she is moved within the hospital.
- Safe to use in car seats to keep a proper posture and protect the spine – by supporting the body from the shoulders to the legs of babies that are small to fit comfortably in the infant car seat that is designed to fit 22 lbs babies.
- Practical: ability to be used on top, under and around the patient at the discretion of the nurse –except the face to prevent suffocation as nurses re-position the infants constantly depending on the condition of the infant.
- Unscented to allow mother to lightly scent it
- Small to minimize interference with medical equipment and other items on the bed
- Ability to modify weight that will be on top of the infant according to the size and needs of the individual patient.
- User able to convert to a bolster support to provide extra support and assistance to those patients that are immobilized, especially those with ventilators and whose head must remain still to prevent extubation, or whose intravenous (IV) lines can malfunction if the patient makes sudden moves. Also, to raise the legs or extremities and/or to prevent rollovers.
- Safe: hypoallergenic to use directly on the skin of the patient as some patients must remain with only diapers so the nurses can assess their color constantly
- Used on the infants’ bed under constant supervision of a nurse.
