In the hospital earlier this month, I was pondering on how antiquated and unfunctional those silly hospital gowns are. There you are, at your lowest state emotionally, and you're wearing something resembling a paper thin rag you clean your windows with. Being a true clothes horse, I thought to myself: "Who on earth is in charge of choosing that horrid material for those ill-fitting garments?"
Well, all is not lost. I came across an article the other day that made me smile. Hopefully this trend will be coming soon to Denver . . .
London AP - In a boon for patients, stylish hospital gowns that snap down the side were unveiled Tuesday to eventually replace those shapeless cloth sacks with useless ties that flash open at the worst possible moment.
Designers were give 25,000 Pounds ($37,500) each to develop protoypes for products that would increase patient dignity.
The most eye-catching product was a jaunty striped hospital gown by US-born fashion designer Ben de Lisi. Made from high quality cotton with a classic pajama stripe pattern, it includes a pouch for a mobile phone and comes accessorized with a snuggly fleece blanket.
"Fine feathers make fine birds," said de Lisi, who has made dresses for stars including Kate Winslet. "If you look good, you feel good."
"Patients in hospitals are at their very lowest ebb, and you want them confident and buoyant so they can ask doctors the questions they need to ask."
Other designs included "modular bed pods" that improve privacy by funneling sound from bedside chats down instead of out and a recovery chair modeled on first-class airplane seats and designed by the team behind Virgin Atlantic's sleek Upper Class cabins.
Health Minister Ann Keen, a former nurse, said the new gowns would improve the hospital experience for everyone and could even help President Barack Obama in his efforts to overhaul US health care practices.
"We can export our ideas to Barack Obama, who has been very successful but needs that extra bit of support," she said.
The Labour Government has promised to get the designs in hospitals acrosss England next year -- if it wins a national election this Spring.
(Copyright 2010 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Geez Louise! Many of you know that I'm a true Anglophile at heart. For a country that gave us such wonderful items as Burberry purses, plays by Andrew Lloyd Weber, High Tea (one of my favorite traditions) and Gin & Tonics, you have to wonder about the merits of this focus on fashion in the hospital setting.
Well, all is not lost. I came across an article the other day that made me smile. Hopefully this trend will be coming soon to Denver . . .
London AP - In a boon for patients, stylish hospital gowns that snap down the side were unveiled Tuesday to eventually replace those shapeless cloth sacks with useless ties that flash open at the worst possible moment.
Designers were give 25,000 Pounds ($37,500) each to develop protoypes for products that would increase patient dignity.
The most eye-catching product was a jaunty striped hospital gown by US-born fashion designer Ben de Lisi. Made from high quality cotton with a classic pajama stripe pattern, it includes a pouch for a mobile phone and comes accessorized with a snuggly fleece blanket.
"Fine feathers make fine birds," said de Lisi, who has made dresses for stars including Kate Winslet. "If you look good, you feel good."
"Patients in hospitals are at their very lowest ebb, and you want them confident and buoyant so they can ask doctors the questions they need to ask."
Other designs included "modular bed pods" that improve privacy by funneling sound from bedside chats down instead of out and a recovery chair modeled on first-class airplane seats and designed by the team behind Virgin Atlantic's sleek Upper Class cabins.
Health Minister Ann Keen, a former nurse, said the new gowns would improve the hospital experience for everyone and could even help President Barack Obama in his efforts to overhaul US health care practices.
"We can export our ideas to Barack Obama, who has been very successful but needs that extra bit of support," she said.
The Labour Government has promised to get the designs in hospitals acrosss England next year -- if it wins a national election this Spring.
(Copyright 2010 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Geez Louise! Many of you know that I'm a true Anglophile at heart. For a country that gave us such wonderful items as Burberry purses, plays by Andrew Lloyd Weber, High Tea (one of my favorite traditions) and Gin & Tonics, you have to wonder about the merits of this focus on fashion in the hospital setting.
I would humbly suggest that the National Health Service put their money towards permitting insured women to a yearly mammogram, instead of today's current standard in the UK of one mammogram for every woman every THREE years!
Above are some photos of my "home girl" Dianne Bruno and me last year in London with my dear friend Moyra and her daughter Isla, during our visit to the UK for Dianne's 40th birthday. Long live England!
No comments:
Post a Comment