HEAJOO (YVONNE) LEE
Award
Lee, H. (2015). Best Paper-1st Place Paper in the master’s category, International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA), Santa Fe, NM, US.
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Publications
Lee, H., & An, S. K. (2020, under review). Examination of Stain Resistance for Medical Scrubs. International Journal of Textile Research.
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Lee, H., & An, S. K. (2018). A Comparative Analysis of Thermal Comfort Properties for Nurse Scrub Jackets. AATCC Journal of Research, 5(2), 35-39.
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Presentations
Lee, H. & An, S. K. (2015). Development and evaluation of nurses’ scrub jacket through the functional design process, International Textile and Apparel Association Proceedings [abstract]. Monument, CO.
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Lee, H. & An, S. K. (2015). Comparison of stain resistance property for nurses’ scrub jacket, International Textile and Apparel Association Proceedings [abstract]. Monument, CO.
Lee, H., & An, S. K. (2014). Evaluating thermal comfort of fabrics for nurses’ uniforms. International Textile and Apparel Association Proceedings [abstract]. Monument, CO.
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AN INVESTIGATION OF CURRENT NURSING SCRUB JACKETS AND PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS
One of the issues of the medical uniform industry is to establish nurses’ scrub jackets that provide physical safety for the nurses, while also affording nurses the maximum amount of comfort and personal freedom in the choice of materials and design details. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to (a) investigate the characteristics of nurses’ scrub jackets; (b) evaluate the properties of fabrics and thermal issue in current commercial fabrics market; (c) create a functional, yet comfortable, design for scrub jackets; and (d) evaluate the most appropriate and functional new nurses’ scrub jacket.
Fabric Tests
Examine to analyze the best fabric properties for the nursing scrub jacket
HOT-PLATE TEST
This test was used to find the appropriate Rct and Ret of fabrics for the new prototypes comparing knitted fabrics and woven fabrics. Dependent variables were Rct and Ret, and independent variables were fabric structure and fiber content. In the ISO 11092 standard (Sweating Guarded Hot Plate Test Method), a fabric's thermal resistance and water-vapor resistance are important in determining the suitability for wearing functional and optimal clothing in the ambient environment. Regarding the thermal issue which is one of main reasons of scrub jacket, this study has expected to find the fabrics with the highest Rct, which means fabrics that keep the body warm better, as well as ones with the lowest Ret, which means the ones best for moisture ventilation among the ten fabrics through hot-plate test. As mentioned previously, the purpose of the scrub jacket is not only to keep the heat but also to vaporize the sweat quickly in order to provide better thermal condition to the nurses in the hospital.
Independent t-Test Result
The independent t-test results for Hypothesis 1 are reported. The results show that the variation in thermal resistance between woven fabrics and knitted fabrics was significant (t (19.87) = -4.49, p < .01). Also, the water-vapor resistance (Ret) differences between the fabric structures. The results shows that the woven fabrics were significantly different compared with the knitted fabrics (t (28) = 3.37, p < .01). Additionally, this table shows that the mean of the woven fabrics (mean = 3.39, sd = 1.15) was significantly higher than the mean of the knitted fabrics (mean = 2, sd = 1.11). This finding indicated that sweat from the body could go through the knitted fabrics easier than the woven fabrics.
ANOVA Test Result
The results of the ANOVA, which reported a significant difference among the fabrics to water vapor resistance (F (9, 20) = 41.78, p < .00). Fabric of K65C35P, K100C, and K100PÂ has the higher Rct. It means these fabrics are better to keep the heat between body and garment.
In the water-vapor resistance (Ret) test, the result indicated the fabrics were differed significantly (F (9, 20) = 11.54, p < .00). The fabrics (W65P35R, K65C35P, K50C48P2S, K100C, and K100P) had the lowest Ret values, which means it has the better moisture permeability.
STAIN RESISTANCE TEST
The main goal of stain test is to know the condition of the stain removal in the current scrub jackets, and to investigate a better stain resistant fabric for the new scrub jacket prototypes. From the findings of the pre-focus group interview regarding current scrub jackets, all participants focused on the importance of stain removal from their scrub jackets, yet they were concerned about the effects of frequent launderings on the textile’s properties, such as color change, skewness, pilling, and smoothness. Stain resistance is one of the important issues that need to be dealt with for the nursing uniform, including the scrub jacket, because it is likely to be soiled frequently and heavily during the work day. However, if the material is stain resistant, the clean appearance can be maintained for a longer period of time. Commonly, scrub jackets have a high possibility of becoming stained by coffee and ballpoint ink easily. Thus, both coffee and ballpoint ink were conducted to stain resistance test in this study. The results of the ballpoint and coffee stain tests of fabrics assessed each hypothesis by means of the stain release replica of AATCC Test Method 130.
Coffee Stain Test
According to AATCC standard 130, the result indicated that a wearer can more easily remove a coffee stain from knitted fabrics than from woven fabrics. Fabrics of W65P35R and W100P were more effective at coffee stain resistance and the most appropriate fabrics from which to remove coffee stains easily.
Ballpoint Stain Test
This result indicates that the knitted fabrics have better stain resistance than the woven fabrics, which means the knitted fabrics have a better removability of ballpoint stains than woven fabrics. K50C48P2S is the best fabric from which to remove ballpoint stains. Conversely, W55C42P3S and K100P, which have numbers closer to 1, indicate the poorest stain removal outcomes
Design Criteria
The framework of the consumers’ needs includes FEA model which are three considerations: Functional, Expressive, and Aesthetic needs (Lamb & Kallal, 1992). Based on the pre-focus group interview and fabric tests, design criteria identified ten needs factors for this study.
Define Design Criteria
The functional consideration was usually involved in the characteristics of the materials such as fit/ movement, thermal balance, easy to wear, ease of care, and durability. In the aesthetic consideration, enhancing factors of good visual design like line, shape, style, and design details are included, and professional appearance, cleanliness, and hygiene appearance were classified into the expressive consideration.
Interaction Matrix of Design Criteria
As shown in Table, there were no conflicts in the design criteria. However, several conflict conditions should be remedied before making new nursing scrub jackets. Cleanliness/Hygiene should be incorporated into the nursing scrub jacket design while Ease of Care should not be ignored. Durability should also not be compromised with relation to Cleanliness/Hygiene. Getting stains on jacket from medicine spills, blood, and other body secretions is expected to happen quite often in the nursing profession. Moreover, Design Details/Convenience has to be incorporated into the nursing scrub jacket in addition to Durability.
Prototypes
Based on the results of the pre-focus group interview, the needs and dissatisfaction of participants were considered and three prototype scrub jackets for nurses were designed. The three prototypes also applied the effective fabric combinations resulting from the fabric tests: hot-plate test and stain test. All three prototypes were designed with the consideration of ten design criteria factors: Fit/ Movement, Thermal Balance, Easy to wear, Line/Shape, Ease of care, Attractive/Stylish, Cleanliness/Hygiene, Durability, Professional Appearance, and Design Details/Convenience. Each prototype responded to each of these factors.
