LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. -- U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Derren Proctor, 19th Healthcare Operations Squadron aerospace medical technician, and Bryson Coleman, 19th Medical Group assistant facility manager, created an identification badge holder prototype, which was recently selected by the Defense Health Agency (DHA) as part of its MedWERX fellowship program.
The DHA MedWERX fellowship program will allocate $10,000 to help the 19th MDG fund the necessary supplies to produce the badge holders. The program aims to empower civilian and uniformed employees at military hospitals and clinics to solve real-world problems they face every day.
Coleman and Proctor’s prototypes include identifiers allowing patients to distinguish various specialties such as nurses, doctors and other medical staff in DHA medical treatment facilities.
“We had a need for our nurses and our medical professionals to be credentialed as it's a state law requirement,” Coleman said. “I worked with Airman Proctor and he was able to attend a HERKWERX class where he was able to take the idea and develop it into an actual product.”
To assist in making their vision a reality, Proctor and Coleman continued to work with Little Rock Air Force Base’s HERKWERX innovation lab and used their 3D printers to produce the identification badge holder prototypes.
By using 3D printers to craft the badge holders rather than purchasing them, it cuts the cost of supplying them to 19th MDG personnel by nearly 80%.
“On the required credentials you might be spending $8 per person,” Coleman said. “Through 3D printing, you can accomplish this for pennies on the dollar.”
Proctor explained that the badge holders display a duty identifier paired with different colors to help patients distinguish the different professions in the clinic while also being double-sided to allow badges and common access cards to have access capabilities to required areas in the facility.
Through their innovation and assistance from the HERKWERX team, Proctor and Coleman’s prototypes provide a solution that cuts costs, helps patients and ensures they have the identification and credentials needed to accomplish their mission as efficiently as possible.