Grip

In a collaborative project with Saint James's Hospital, Dublin, my team and I were tasked with designing out the problem of crutch storage. to prevent patients at risk of falling. The brief was to focus on creating a product that would hold crutches up right in multiple environments throughout the hospital. The project required a human centred design apporach as each decision was carefully made to create a better experience for the patient.

At our first concept stage, we focused on creating a crutch holder that would have wide openings, enabling the crutches to be held in a fixed position. The edges were to be coloured with rubber to offer grip and help those who are visually impaired. Focusing on a form that is simple to use would make the design inclusive to a wide range of patients. Such as those suffering from degenerative diseases, visually impaired and patients with poor dexterity.
After our first client presentation, user safety and crutch stability were the main concerns of our client. To tackle this we created the form below. However, we were not happy with this as it did not consider those with dexterity issues, as they had to twist the crutch into place. Patients would also have to learn how to use the product effectively. This made the form ineffective. 
Huge consideration was placed on Grip's form. Patient safety was at the forefront of our minds while designing Grip. We accommodated for safety by having gentle curves to protect a patient in the event of a fall.
Having wide openings with brightly coloured rubber flaps served many purposes. It allowed users with poor eye-sight and poor dexterity to use Grip with ease. As the rubber flaps would bend easily back and forward holding the crutches securely.
It was important that Grip is intuitive to use, so easy learnability was key. 
Material Choices were key in making Grip a viable solution for the hospital setting.
Grip's main body was made up of powder-coated steel sheet metal. This creates a sturdy, corrosion proof and easy to clean product. Allowing Grip to be used in many different environments throughout the hospital. Such as the shower spaces. 
Santoprene rubber was then used for the flaps. This is a robust and flexible material that is easy to process.
The selected materials fulfilled the needs of Saint James's Hospital while being easy to process. This was key as the client is cost sensitive.
As a bonus, our team designed up a portable stand that could aid in the movement of crutches around the hospital wards.
-Materials- Steel, Santoprene
-Designers- Gareth Byrne, Federico Tussaciu, George Patton, Sarah Norgrove, Tadhg O'Connell
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