Pépi splint
A soft silicone splint to protect premature babies from losing skin due to medical tape.
Skin injuries are the most common iIatrogenic injuries in hospitalised babies. Most babies who are admitted to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit require an intravenous catheter for medication and nutrition. The drips are placed inside a vein and most unwell babies require multiple drips. The tape fixing the drips may injure the delicate skin, giving more chances for complications which prolong hospitalisation and can result in permanent scarring. The staff at Waikato hospital engaged MWDesign to develop a product to reduce this type of harm. The Pépi splint is designed to allow simple application and removal while providing rigid limb isolation, a gentle but firm skin grip without causing irritation to delicate skin. The Pépi splint secures the PIVC without direct adhesive contact to baby's skin. The splint is reusable, ambidextrous in both hands and feet, can be sterilized in an autoclave, reducing unnecessary waste. It can be trimmed to suit baby's needs and 100% free skin from tape.