Abstract:
The present invention provides a device for nurses to secure nursing supplies on retractable cords in order to keep the nursing supplies permanently organized, easily accessible and permanently secured to prevent misplacing or losing the supplies. The device can be augmented with pockets, velcro fasteners and a holder for alcohol pads or other supplies not suited for the retractable cords. No previous inventions kept the nursing supplies permanently organized and secured.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
         [0001]    Not Applicable  
         STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0002]    Not Applicable  
         REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX  
         [0003]    Not Applicable  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0005]    This invention relates to the field of devices that nurses use to hold their daily needed supplies and to minimize loss of equipment.  
           [0006]    2. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0007]    There have been no recent changes in the technology of nursing organizers available today that have made an impact in the nursing profession. They are neither efficient nor up to date with the more modem changing nurse look today. If you are familiar with the nursing functions on a daily basis, you will find nurses are always fumbling through their pockets for supplies, or running down the hall to borrow them. Nurses rarely carry scissors or neuro check light because they are frequently lost or forgotten at home. Organizers that are available are usually sold in uniform shops or student stores. There are three types of organizers currently available. The first is the Pocket Organizer, which comes in various sizes and fits in the pocket of the nursing uniform jacket or pants. It&#39;s made of nylon with small pockets on one side for supplies. This method of keeping supplies is ineffective. The organizer must be pulled out of the pocket. The supplies may or may not be in the organizer depending whether the supplies were returned after the last use. Supplies rarely make it back to the organizer.  
           [0008]    The second type of organizer is an Organizer Apron that wraps around the waist. It is also made of nylon and comes in small, medium and large. It has many pockets, and Velcro straps to hold tape. This organizer is very cumbersome, unattractive and antiquated.  
           [0009]    The third type of organizer is the fanny pack type nurse organizer called the Hip Pack. It also wraps around the waist. It opens and closes with a zipper and has a large compartment in which to put your supplies. The supplies are loose and locating the desired utensil is worse than fumbling through your pockets for the supplies. Nurses claim this organizer is bulky and makes them look fat. Nurses do not want to wear anything bulky, heavy or inconvenient.  
           [0010]    Nurses rarely use the organizers presently on the market, because supplies rarely make it back to the organizer that defeats the purpose of the organizer and makes it difficult to find the specific item needed. They are cumbersome and unattractive. Even the Pocket Organizer creates bulging pockets. These devices to help organize supplies do not keep the supplies permanently organized. The supplies become unorganized, misplaced or lost, resulting in the nurses not having their supplies conveniently available.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0011]    The basis of the invention is a device to keep the nursing supplies permanently organized so that the location is always known and to provide quick easy access to them. The device utilizes a retractable extension, like a retractable key chain, to keep supplies permanently organized, easily accessible and secured from being lost. Multiple retractable extensions are used for the different supplies. The retractable extensions are an excellent way of securing nursing supplies such as scissors, neuro light, hemostats, and tape. Integrated into this device are cotton ball and alcohol dispensers for quick and easy access. It clips conveniently to the waistband. The device can also be augmented with pockets and Velcro fasteners. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the front of the multi-holder for nurse supplies.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the back of the multi-holder for nurse supplies illustrating the clips to attach to a waistband.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3 is vertical cross section of the back of the multi-holder for nurse supplies illustrating the area for the retractable extensions, the compartment to hold cotton balls and the spring to assist in dispensing the cotton balls.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4 is a vertical cross section of the left hand end of the multi-holder for nurse supplies illustrating the compartment to hold the alcohol pads and the spring to assist in dispensing the alcohol pads.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 5 is a vertical cross section view of the right hand end of the multi-holder for nurse supplies illustrating the cotton ball dispenser and spring along with the retractable extensions with one extension in an extended position.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 6 is a view of the back of the tape dispenser showing the clips that can attach to a waistband along with a connector on the right side of the tape dispenser that can attach to the multi-holder.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are perspective views of the retracting extension mechanisms arranged in different configurations. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0019]    The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings that are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention. This invention relates to a device that is a more efficient organizer for medical personnel.  
         [0020]    One preferred embodiment of this invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. A multi-holder  10  incorporates retractable extensions  16  along with a cotton ball dispenser  12  and alcohol pad dispenser  14 . The outer casing could be made with different types of materials with a preferred embodiment being a rigid plastic. The multi-holder  10  can be made in different colors to coordinate with typical nurse uniform colors. The multi-holder  10  as pictured in FIG. 1 is an oblong box shaped structure measuring approximately 4.5 inches in length, 2.5 inches in height and 1.0 inches in depth. FIG. 1 shows, on the bottom left, four retractable extensions with utensil snaps  16  on the end. The utensil snaps  16  allow the supplies, such as the scissors  24  and neuro light  26 , to be connected, removed or changed. FIG. 1 shows the cotton ball dispenser  12  on the upper left side of the multi-holder  10  along with the alcohol pad dispenser  14  on the upper right side of the multi-holder  10 .  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 2 shows the back of the multi-holder  10  with two clips  18  to secure the multi-holder  10  to a waistband along with another perspective view of the cotton ball dispenser  12 , alcohol pad dispenser  14  and utensil snaps  16 .  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 3 is a vertical cross section of the back of the multi-holder  10  showing the retracting cord mechanisms  22  with the utensil snaps  16  holding a pair of scissors  24  and a neuro light  26 . FIG. 3 also shows the cotton balls  38  in the cotton ball dispenser  12  with the spring  20  to assist in dispensing the cotton balls  38 . The compression material  40  in the alcohol pad dispenser  14  is shown which assists in dispensing the alcohol pads.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 4 is a cross section through the left hand end of the multi-holder  10  that illustrates the compression material  40  to apply pressure to the alcohol pads  28  in the alcohol pad dispenser. FIG. 5 is a cross section through the right hand end of the multi-holder  10  which illustrates the spring  20  in the cotton ball dispenser  12  and the retracting cord mechanisms  22  with the front retracting cord mechanism having an extended cord  30 .  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 illustrate how a separate tape dispenser  32  could be connected to the multi-holder  10  by means of a connector on the multi-holder  34  and a connector on the tape dispenser  36 . The means of connection could vary significantly and the tape dispenser  32  could also be made an integral part of the multi-holder  10  in another embodiment.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 illustrate that the arrangement and number of the retracting cord mechanisms  22  and the utensil snaps can be varied. The multi-holder  10  could be made in a variation of embodiments of retracting cord mechanisms  22  and dispensers to allow the nurse a choice of how she wants to carry her supplies.  
         [0026]    The advantage of this invention is that everything has its own place and is permanently connected unlike any other organizer on the market. The multi-holder  10  incorporates multiple retracting cord mechanisms  22  and utensil snaps  16  along with a cotton ball dispenser and alcohol pad dispenser. The utensil snaps  16 , connected to the retracting cord mechanisms  22 , allow attachment and retention of nursing scissors  24 , neuro check light  26 , hemostats and other supplies. The supplies can be easily changed based on the their individual needs. The supplies would not normally ever need to be detached from the utensil snaps  16  as an extended cord  30  would normally provide sufficient length. This constant attachment while in use or not makes the access to the supplies more efficient and minimizes the loss of supplies. No other organizer on the market provides this constant attachment. Supplies, with the other organizers on the market, rarely make it back to the organizer resulting in supplies becoming unorganized, misplaced or lost. Even if the specific supply needs to be temporarily removed from the utensil snap  16 , it can be easily removed and returned to the utensil snap  16  for retention.  
         [0027]    The cotton ball dispenser  21  and alcohol pad dispenser  14  are also conveniently integrated in the multi-holder for quick and easy use. The clips  18  attached to the back of the multi-holder  10  fits securely to the waistband of a nursing uniform or other apparel. The multi-holder  10  is compact and lightweight as compared to other organizers on the market that are inefficient, cumbersome and unattractive. The multi-holder can come with any variation of one to several retracting cord mechanisms  22  and with or without the cotton ball dispenser  12 , alcohol pad dispenser  14  and tape dispenser  32  for various individual needs.  
         [0028]    The retracting cord mechanisms  22  and utensil snaps  16  allow for use of supplies like scissors  24  and neuro light  26  that retract back into place after their use and are thus easily accessible and never misplaced. The advantage of attaching the cotton ball dispenser  12  and alcohol pad dispenser  14  is that these supplies are right at the fingertips. When a cotton ball  38  or alcohol pad  28  is removed the next one is pushed forward by an internal spring  20  or compression material  40  for quick and easy use. Attachment of a tape dispenser allows for easy access to pull a piece of tape with only one hand.  
         [0029]    There are patents utilizing the retractable key chain idea for various utensils. These patents are simillary based on the need for easy access and control. Most of these patents relate to sports activities where the easy access and control assist in performing the sports activity. No patents are known to utilize the retractable cord mechanisms  22  for medical supplies.  
         [0030]    The inventor is an experienced practising nurse with knowledge of the needs of the profession. The inital response from others in the profession has been very encouraging as to the need and potential for the invention.  
         [0031]    Although the invention has been described in its preferred form with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form may be changed in the details of its construction, and a recombination and rearrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.