Nurses are the first point of contact for patients when they visit the hospital and when there is any first aid to be administered upon reaching the hospital, it is the nurses’ duty to do so.
The role of nurses in the healthcare industry is not one to be taken for granted as some of the revolutionary inventions in health sector were by nurses. Talk of the neonatal phototherapy, the crash cart and ostomy bag to name a few.
Some also believe nursing is a calling because they desire to see their patients at their utmost best before, during and after treatments at any health facility.
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It is against this backdrop that Brian Mohika BSN invented CathWear, an all-inclusive catheter management system manufactured into a comfortable, high-quality unisex brief.
“I had a desire to want to know more about the patient’s overall health conditions, medications, and also getting to know their immediate family, which was accompanying them.”
Mohika is also a United States Air Force veteran and as part of his training in the army, they were taught to pay close attention to details.
A skill he transferred into the creation of the CathWear and his other inventions, according to Nurse.org.
Most inventions are triggered by a need to solve a recurring problem or to ease an already existent process.
Prior to going to nursing school, he was into interventional radiology as a technologist/scrub tech after he had earned his radiology degree and he later went to school to earn his baccalaureate in science degree.
As an interventional radiology specialist, he was privy to hearing complaints from patients who had drains inserted inside of their organs.
All these patients had one recurring problem, they had irritated skin from the leg straps continually sliding up and down their legs.
To get some relief, they in turn overtighten their leg straps which only ends up reducing blood flow to their legs and posing as threat to their already existent medical conditions.
Another complain patients made was the dislodgement of the tubes when trying to undress or use the restroom.
This inconvenience only saw patients returning to the hospital for another placement procedure which is not devoid of cost.
The medical complications were not the only worry of patients who had leg straps. Simple things like choosing the type of clothing to wear or even going swimming becomes tiresome for them.
For Mohika, his ah-ha moment happened when he walked into a procedure room and a patient with bilateral ostomy tubes had one of the bags safety-pinned to his underwear.
“It was at this moment when my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ gave me a vision for CathWear. I had a vision of this medical underwear on this patient, and at the end of my shift I went home, and I drew it.”
According to Mohika, he dashed to the nearest Walmart and bought an underwear, then went to get the other supplies from an arts and craft store.
He made a more technical person build the first prototype of CathWear on his kitchen table while he guided the person towards the ‘vision’ he had in the operating room.
At the time, he was not a nurse, he developed the prototype while in nursing school at the University of Massachusetts.
The next step after developing the prototype was applying for a patent and on July 16, 2013, a patent was granted.
“I know this vision came from God because it’s way ahead of its time. We have truly revolutionized the medical garment industry.”
What could be a challenge opened a window to set up an infrastructure for CathWear.
The process of now finding a manufacturer that could execute Mohika’s vision to the teeth was quite cumbersome. Close to 15 manufactures were contacted.
Between analyzing samples to make sure all the boxes required are ticked, CathWear got registered with the FDA, it acquired its own Medicare code which allows doctors to prescribe CathWear or write a script for it.
Finally, CathWear was registered as a Certified Veteran owned company.
The main reason why CathWear is seen a revolutionary invention is because it is a more hygienic and cost-effective option.
“CathWear has the ability to lower infection rates in hospitals and increase cost savings. Infection rates can potentially decrease because the day and night bag won’t have to be changed as frequently.
“The cost savings come from the reduction in supplies used to replace unsanitary straps and also wound care dressings.”
