THE CHALLENGE

After observing both the elderly and others with significant ambulatory and mobility impairments, Roland Hahn and his daughter, Janet Gohlke, saw health care workers struggle to handle these patients. Especially difficult for the workers was moving them, many of who had very little ability to move their feet, pivot their body or otherwise assist the care person to move them successfully. Often times, health care workers had to help lift and turn these patients, putting the workers at an increased risk for related back, shoulder and leg injuries. To help solve this problem, the pair went to work to create a device that would lessen the struggle of transferring ambulatory and mobility impaired patients.

THE APPROACH

Hahn and Gohlke enlisted MAGNET's help to transform their idea concept into a viable product. Working in conjunction with MAGNET product engineers, the team designed, engineered and built two fully-remote controlled prototypes of the Pivot Assist at MAGNET's Innovation Center.

This twin-disc, motor driven device does the movement of an ambulatory impaired patient in a safe environment with practically no effort on the part of the patient and the caregiver. The device can move the patient from a stationary position to any optional second position, a full 180 degrees either left or right. It moves slowly, steadily and starts and stops with no abrupt jerking. An optional, alternate power converter also was developed for use in assisting patients in and out of motor vehicles.

A tremendous amount of time was put into developing this product to ensure a successful launch into the marketplace. Valuable features were added into the design including padded, patient-assist bars; a secure restraining belt; wheels for easy movement and a safe remote control operation. MAGNET engineers tested the device extensively for strength and durability, designing and engineering it for long term and frequent use. Pivot Assist, LLC, projects a distribution of over 500,000 units by late 2005.

CUSTOMER QUOTE

"MAGNET helped to take this product from an idea in our head, to an idea on paper to an actual device."
Roland Hahn

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