Learning by listening: How a nurse helped lead the way to create a new global device

“It’s the nurse in me”, says Kimberly Schommer, RN, BSN, PHN, who works as an application engineer at Solventum. “Even when I’m not at the bedside, I still look at how I can provide care.” 

In a time of staff shortages and high turnover, every minute is even more valuable. Solutions designed to save time and enable better patient care can make a powerful difference. One innovative device, driven by extensive feedback from practising nurses, is generating excitement around the globe. 

Feedback from clinicians to clinicians

“There was a need, and we listened to the feedback”, says Kim. She adds that the 3M™ Nasogastric Securement Device was created based on “extensive customer feedback from clinicians to clinicians.”

A nasogastric (NG) tube is used when a patient needs a tube placed through their nose into the stomach. Once the tube is placed, it needs to be secured to provide critical therapy. Our Solventum team heard that existing securement devices were prone to falling off and needed to be replaced at unplanned times. When medical tape is used to secure NG tubes, it’s time intensive for clinicians and the technique isn’t standardised, causing variability in patient care.

Kim adds that when a tube slips, it disrupts the patient’s therapy – complicating their clinical course and sometimes requiring elevated care. In addition to these medical concerns, reinserting the NG tube requires a significant amount of time and effort from multiple clinicians with the aid of an X-ray to confirm placement. Clinicians expressed concerns – supported by the literature – that medical device-related pressure injury can occur with prolonged NG tube therapy. Clinicians indicated that to prevent it, they often need to change tape or remove devices daily.

Working side-by-side with clinicians, our Solventum medical team learnt more about how critical the need was to make a better, safer solution for patients and clinicians.

It takes a global team

The team worked closely with Jener Oliveira, an application and product engineer. He had helped develop an NG tube securement device for the market in Brazil and was able to share learnings from his work with local clinicians, including suggestions for the ideal adhesive to stick to the nose. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

“I visited hospitals in Brazil, and we saw many different techniques for securing tubes”, Jener says. He noted that nurses were cutting tapes by hand into different shapes and using materials that weren’t ideal for skin. Nurses were also changing the tape every 24 hours, which often caused injury after a few dressing changes. “We introduced skin-friendly tape but also found that the nose is more oily, so we developed an adhesive that worked well on the nose”, he says. 

The team in the USA consulted with Jener and added some new features to the design. They knew that the tube should stay in place, but clinicians also need to know when it should be moved. If the tube is in place for a long period and putting pressure on the nasal mucosa, patients run the risk of developing a device-related pressure injury.  

A clear need for a clear dressing

One request heard during feedback – the need for a transparent device – had an unexpected benefit. 

Clinicians asked for a see-through device so they could complete a more thorough skin assessment, to see if skin was starting to turn pink, indicating that the NG tube should be repositioned to avoid a pressure injury. In customer trials, our Solventum team heard from patients and their families about an added benefit: being able to see more of the patient’s face. After seeing the product in use in a clinical setting, Kim commented: “I’ll never forget one patient, a grandma, saying ‘I can see my face now!’ How happy she was.” 

The device has additional features that were developed based on early input: a tab for easy removal and a non-adhesive section at the base of the nose allowing the tube to hang freely to reduce contact pressure against the skin – a key driver for reduced risk of pressure injury. 

Global team. Global impact.

As this new solution is in the early stages of being introduced worldwide, excitement continues to build. Kim shares that there has been a high interest and high success rate in trials from many large healthcare systems in the USA and from all of Solventum’s global geographies. Having a standardised device that can save time and allow clinicians to see their patients’ skin has resonated with clinicians globally. ​​Some countries pushed up their planned launch timing because they heard of early interest from customers.

Seeing the impact and hearing positive feedback makes it clear that listening carefully and designing high-quality solutions by clinicians for clinicians can help address major clinical challenges and enable providers to deliver better care around the world.

 1. 3M data on file. CUST-CVE-05-661718.