This is an idea so prosaic I almost hate to post it, but since I post everything else that pops into my head, here it goes.

While in the hospital, patients are often hooked to IV poles. These are solid enough to support little robot IV pumpers, and bags of IV juice. They usually have 4 or 5 castors so they can roll. When the patient must go for a wheelchair ride, this big pole must come with. Wheelchairs sometimes have little IV poles, but these cannot hold the IV pumper robots, and it is a pain in the butt to detach everything, then put it on the wheelchair, then back to a pole at the distination.

So: the transporter must push the wheelchair one handed and gimp the pole along with the other hand. They cannot get too far apart, pole and chair, because the IVs are hooked to the patient in the chair. It is cumbersome.

My proposal: a shelf slightly above floor level, hung beneath the chair. It would protrude backwards no farther than the chair handles. The IV poles could be lifted up and set onto this shelf. It would have forks to hold the poles in place. The transporter could then push chair and pole together.

If needed, the transporter could also wear a fake rubber butt and hurl flaming bags of pee.
-- bungston, Jan 24 2005

Got me thinking. Let_20the_20Patients_20Sleep
[bungston, Jan 24 2005]

IV pole for wheelchairs http://www.medicalp...m/mriwheelivpo.html
This bolt onto the wheelchair and can support a volumetric infusion pump [Klaatu, Jan 24 2005]

Volumetric infusion pump http://www.cnamedical.com/gemini_pc2.htm
They have also become lighter than when they were first introduced in the early 1980's.(18.5 lbs) [Klaatu, Jan 24 2005]

Wheelchair accessories http://www.edmond-w...duct_Code=397000008
Holds IV and oxygen [Klaatu, Jan 24 2005]

This has been baked since my days in trauma. They bolt onto the wheelchair and can support a volumetric infusion pump ("pumper") without difficulty. There are also bolt-ons for oxygen tanks.

<link>
-- Klaatu, Jan 24 2005


Got me thinking, bung. Similar to San Fransisco trolley cars, grooves on the ceiling, that you could run your IV poles from. The major poles, atleast.

Attach all you want to the "arms" of the poles. But you would only need to push the higher part of the pole to navigate.

You could even tote around a freeloader in a wheelchair, if ya wanted. Just ring him up to the pole, and push.

Klaatu, I was under the impression that bung was not talking about other arm type things to push around, which we all know exist, but his idea was a "one shelf" backsider, to do most everything else.

My addition would just make it easier to push, and would leave you many more options for fancy additions.
-- blissmiss, Jan 24 2005



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