Simple Moments Can Be Profound

For many "Innovation" has become a buzz word, but it is more than that. The path of innovation is not usally linear or easy, but it can be very rewarding. This website showcases how a simple moment can be an invitation to something better.

The Story of Rollie Pollie

Designed by passion

In a busy hospital lobby, a single mom was walking toward the front door. She had an IV pole in one hand and pulling her child in a wagon with the other. It was clear that she was struggling. This is a daily occurrence in many children’s hospitals. There are as many as 33,000 inpatient pediatric beds in the U.S. There are also as many as 10,000 wagons being used to transport these sick kids. Many of these wagons are donated in honor of a meaningful stay in the hospital.

Rollie Pollie is a device that will make it easier to give sick kids and their parents an extra hand when they need it most. It attaches to the wagons and IV poles that already exist in the hospitals

Meet Rollie Pollie

Innovative Design

Great care was taken to insure that this invention has the right features.

Simple Operation

Rollie Pollie is easy to install and use.

Quick Deploy

This device was made to save time and simplify patient tranportation.

Secure Connection

Rollie Pollie connects quickly and holds fast

Adaptive Function

Rollie Pollie was made to make hospital visits less complicated

Modular Configurations

Not just for wagons. This design supports multiple patient transport vehicles

How does it work?

Easy Operation

Rollie Pollie is a modular device that can be attached to a wide range of patient transport platforms. This stand-alone innovation works with different brands of wagons, wheelchairs, gurneys, patent beds, rolling walkers, and more. It extends for secure connection and folds for quick storage. The patented rotating grip accommodates a wide range of medical and personal items.

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Patient Beds

Most patient beds are required to be mobile. The beds in an ICU have different requirements than those found in a sleep study lab, or nursing home. Beds found in inpatient units may need to be moved quickly into a unit with different capabilities. In cases where multiple IV treatments are being used, this relocation is a logistical burden. Rollie Pollie can occupy several places on such beds to attach multiple IV poles and other devices to make a patient transition more expedient and less cumbersome.

Patient Beds

While many healthcare organizations take great care to standardize their beds and other equipment, variations based on needs, cost, and availability occur. These variations can make it difficult for an innovative idea to reach every area of the hospital or clinic. Rollie Pollie's adaptive modular configuration allows it to firmly attach to a wide range of patient patient beds. This feature allows clinical staff to attach bedside IV poles to the bed without restacking pumps, treatment solutions, or other items to a rigid fixed pole on the bed. This gives the patient more mobility and security. This feature also gives clinical staff time to spend on other tasks instead of managing the complexities of medical peripherals like IV poles and other mobile stands.

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Wheelchairs

Wheelchairs are a standard for patient transport in many adult clinics and hospitals. They are also a means of personal mobility for many people navigating the daily functions of an active lifestyle. Rollie Pollie's modular attachment configuration accommodates nearly any wheelchair in use today. This device provides additional utility and freedom for anyone requiring a wheelchair either on a temporary or on-going basis. Its rugged design is specifically built for portability and everyday use.

Personal Wheelchairs

Patients with personal wheelchairs can benefit from the assitance that Rollie Pollie provides. Rollie Pollie can be configured to securely hold suitcases, equipment, and other items while attached to many different types of wheelchairs. This configuration is useful outside the hospital in everyday settings such as airports, malls, and grocery stores.

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Wagons

Before Rollie Pollie was recognized for its wide range of clinical and personal applications it was designed to attach child-size wagons to IV poles in a hospital setting. Great care was taken to identify how wagons were being used in the hospital. We conducted numerous motion and ergonomic studies and spoke with patients, parents, and hospital staff extensively to understand how to design a solution that would provide the greatest impact without creating additional problems. Rollie Pollie provides easy assistance that even children can deploy and enjoy.

Kick-Stand Mode

Storage space in any hospital is often scarce, this is especially true for a children’s hospital. Wagons are stored vertically to make the most of floor space. This way three vertical wagons can share the same floor space of one horizontal wagon. Rollie Pollie was specifically designed to give wagons a stable “Kick-stand” to save space.

One Button!

Once the wagons are in use a simple button press extends the arm. The arms automatically lock securely into place. Press the button again to lower the arm for storage.

Click.

Some pediatric wagons have a fixed IV pole mounted on the wagon. Unfortunately these wagons are often difficult to store and use. Fixed IVpole wagons create extra work for the clinical staff to transfer pumps and bags to the wagon and back again to the IV pole at the bedside. Rollie Pollie was designed to instantly and securely connect the bedside IV pole to the wagon. “Click” and go.

Simplified Operation

One of the rules we implemented when designing Rollie Pollie was "No Bending". This rule specifically referred to the human operator needing to bow, kneel, or squat to connect the device to an IV pole or other medical equipment. This particular rule was generated from the extensive observation that many of the people pulling wagons appeared to be grandparents of the child being transported if not transported by hospital staff. The application of this insight meant that not only should deployment not require bending, but the act of connecting should not involve unnecessary hand tightening to secure the items. Taken together these constraints provided the foundation of a design that connects quickly with very little effort.

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Versitle Adaptation

Sometimes wagons are used to carry stuff in or out of the hospital. Often this means that luggage and other items are placed into a waggon for transport. Rollie Pollie was designed to help with a range of tasks and lend a free hand.

Multiple Uses

By creating a device with an additional degree of freedom, the utility Rollie Pollie is used also improves. While we have tasted many configurations in the hospital environment there are likely even more uses than we have cataloged. Rollie Pollie started with a specific task, but it quickly became clear that it could be used to assist in many different situations. There will never be a comprehensive list of all the uses for which Rollie Pollie is suited, but many reoccurring needs in and outside of the clinical space are met through the adaptive features of this design.

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Easy Removal for Clean-up

Everything in the hospital must be cleaned often to prevent the spread of germs and viruses. Sometimes that means items are cleaned several times a week or even several times a day. Wagons and IV poles are cleaned with pressure washers in a special room made for cleaning large items. For ease of cleaning, Rollie Pollie was designed to be quickly installed and removed without tools.

Pearson Innovation

This invention is a product of Pearson Innovation. Need help turning your idea into a reality? Let us help. Pearson Innovation is like a think tank, and idea lab rolled into one. Use the link below to schedule a free private consultation to explore how Pearson Innovation can assist you on your next project.

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Rollie Pollie Reviews

Y’all. Take time to read this. All my child life friends take note. Anyone who has ever had a child in the hospital knows how much easier this would make getting around in a wagon. Kids love wagons, they’re great normalization tools for a hospitalized child, now their IV pole can tag along without the fuss.

Sarah Tigner Bethards

Child Life Professional

This wagon will help solve a lot of issues parents have even at home with their children who have disabilities.

Kim Molinaro

Parent Advocate / trained by Governor’s Council on developmental disabilities (GCDD)

Contact Us

We hope you found what you needed here. However, if you have additional comments or questions, please email us. We welcome feedback and dialog on this project. Use this email address [email protected] or the contact form provided below. If you need additional details not provided on this website please reach out, and we will respond as soon as we can.