[CPAP] How can I minimize discomfort from vent air

[DariaVader]

What you're prejudice against pink? What's wrong with pink??

Cut her some slack. She's from Oregon...... We don't do pink.

Mossy green or nuthin!

pink is an ok choice... when it's a choice.


I am actually adjusting to the FX pretty well, although it did slide to the side last night once. One thing I did that was helpful is to loosen it (Thanks to the advice on this board) I had it on too tight, but then it slid a little. gave me a leak rate of 24 (although I am not sure quite how to interpret leak data)

I am *really* puffy eyed and my sinuses feel like I have been swimming. I hope that will subside. I do have a tinge of a cold I have been keeping at bay with umcka, so that may be a contributing factor

[DocWils]

the bifurcated rear portion ...............

...and they said I use big words.....

C'mon! I'm a doctor! Big words are my stock and trade, usually in Greek or Latin!

What you're prejudice against pink? What's wrong with pink??

Cut her some slack. She's from Oregon...... We don't do pink.

Mossy green or nuthin!

Pink is great. I wear pink scrubs all the time when they have them. Never liked the green ones we used to have, although back when we wore white I was happiest. Now we have nice blue ones and yellow ones, too. But pink is cool. I have a few pink shirts, too, and no one accuses me of being strange for that. Other things, yes, for pink, no.

[DocWils]

Paula,

There isn't a day goes by that I don't think I couldn't design a mask better than the ones out there, and I think the reason is simple - the engineers designing them don't have to wear them. PAPers aught to be the main design team for the masks. I have said the same thing about scrubs many times. I know a designer of scrubs, and she never once entered an OR. If she did, she'd have a very different view of what we need.

[PaulaO2]

Exactly! How can someone design something so important -- a cpap mask or scrubs -- and not understand how they are supposed to work by immersing yourself in that environment??

Then again, I knew a wheelchair user that designed a wheelchair and it was pretty crappy. It's still around and folks like it because it was designed by "one of us" but it's really crappy.

[DocWils]

Most of the best surgical tools were designed by surgeons because they needed something to do something better than the tool at hand or there was no tool at all, which is why many of our tools have names of people attached to them. There is no way an engineer could understand what it is like to use such tools in a real situation, nor is it easy to explain it to them. But sometimes engineers are better at figuring out the problem. Just not on everything. I think an engineer is a better designer for a basic wheelchair (but maybe not for a good seat in one) just because it really is an engineering problem that they can get behind, and maybe the cpap machine itself, but they have a far harder time to understand the handiness and utility of surgical instruments ( I have no idea how I would get them to understand without risking they operate themselves, something I will not do, of course) or the needs of comfort on a cpap mask.

Still, what I often see in cpap masks are good ideas totally ruined by some daft addition or flaw, the sign of an engineer who never wears them himself working on it - the perfect case in point is the P10 - the lightness of the mask and the excellent soft venting is offset by what they thought of as a clever strap, but we don't want clever, we want comfortable and secure (mine slips by morning, for instance, a problem I never had with the Swift FX strap) - in addition, while it doesn't strictly need it and certainly it saves weight to do without it, a swivel joint for the hose would be a small plus. In the end you find yourself cobbling together ideas from several masks, often from competing manufacturers, to get one good mask. Alas and alack. Well, if wishes were fishes and all that. I figure I ought to see if I can convince my brother, who is a tool and dye maker, to help me build something someday. Alas, right now I am way too busy. Ski season has started, and for orthos, that is our busy season....... but someday.....

[Peter_C]

the bifurcated rear portion ...............

...and they said I use big words.....

What you're prejudice against pink? What's wrong with pink??

Cut her some slack. She's from Oregon...... We don't do pink.

Mossy green or nuthin!

No, you do 'rust'... My favo Oregon color is banana slug yellow

[Galactus]

I prefer my slugs pretty in pink....

[Peter_C]

I prefer my slugs pretty in pink....

That's on the insides...

[herbm]

agreed about design.

Most people cannot (mentally) model things, how they will be used, and such.

The trick to design, is to model the usage and if you can't do it mentally then you must to it physically (and under realistic conditions) to achieve an effective design.

Using the tool for a moment or two is seldom (almost never?) sufficient either -- it must be used under very similar conditions (or the designer must be able to mentally model those conditions) to have a chance of practical design.

Even good modeling may (frequently?) be insufficient since people are different and the item may be used differently by OTHER people and so not work well for others unless the designer can incorporate those differences into the design.

Some few (of us) humans have that skill -- without it, design requires a LOT of trial and error and careful data collection.....