An army of carers is heavily burdened by the rottenest, daily task: putting on compression stockings. How happy they would be to have an aid that completely relieved them of the lashing and pulling stiff stockings during the morning rush hour. That’s where the development of the HelpSoq began.
Compression stocking therapy is an ingenious method of treatment for a whole group of disorders and diseases. Unfortunately, for most patients, it is simply unfeasible. They lack the strength and dexterity to put on such tight, unruly stockings. So these patients are dependent on professional help: an army of carers, who are less and less interested in this daily rotten job. A well-functioning system was inevitable: the HelpSoq. Compression stockings have to deliver pressure and are custom made. So we are not talking about a pair of sports stockings here, compression stockings are much tighter. Putting on such a compression stocking should be done immediately after getting up and taking a shower. Because if you first stand and walk, your legs will quickly become thicker. So there is that job every day, where the stocking has to be lashed over that clammy leg. That cannot be done. Also for nurses and carers a daily burden and annoyance.
Harpert Wouters never let go of the thought that things had to be done better. My house is full of appliances. They help with brushing teeth, blending vegetables and drilling holes. All machines that have been assisting us for decades and making things possible. Things that cannot be done with bare hands. How bizarre is it then that more than 300,000 people in the Netherlands have to put on their compression stockings every day, but cannot use a smoothly working aid for this?’ Harpert didn’t give up. He contacted design agency NPK in Leiden. And together with the designers he went to work.
How do you put a super tight stocking around a clammy lower leg? Numerous options and variants passed the drawing board, but nothing worked. Until the analysis of the problem pointed in the direction of a ring: a powerful machine rolls the compression stocking on a solid ring. And you remove that ring from the machine and fit over your leg again, whereby the stocking unrolls neatly. Without any effort. Anyone who sees the end result for the first time wonders why this bright idea has not been implemented before.
The people at NPK know how to shape a design, so that it is reproducible. And that there will be a solid and reliable solution that can be used internationally. Harpert involved his brother and three expert friends in the project to prepare the HelpSoq as a startup for Dutch patients. After all, the HelpSoq team strives to ensure that all patients with compression stockings have access to a reliable aid. So that adherence to therapy is not hindered by discouraged caregivers. With such a HelpSoq, everyone can wear those stockings on time every day. Without sighing and groaning. “If you had to drill two holes in the wall every day, you would immediately have a drill at home,” says Harpert. The HelpSoq is expected to be launched in February 2022.