1. Please complete and return this application to:
Office of Industrial Liaison/Technology Transfer
650 First Avenue, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10016
1. Name of Invention: Tray Panels
2. Full name and title(s) of all the inventors.
Inventor Department e-mail
Frida Matute Speech-Language Pathology frida.matute@nyumc.org
fmatute1@gmail.com
3. Describe the invention. If necessary, use additional pages. (Sketches, prints, photos, and any pertinent
manuscript should be attached to this disclosure).
(a) Background –
• Premise of Product: Lo-tech clear panels with pockets that can be easily attached (with clips) to any
standard hospital tray. The clear panels have pockets allowing important medical reminders to be slid
in for the patient’s view and recall.
Model IA:
New York University
CONFIDENTIAL DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
MADE BY NYU FACULTY AND STAFF

2. Model IIB:
• Background:
o Patients benefit from visual aids reminding them of important information
 Ex: One of the biggest problems for elderly patients is forgetting to take their prescription
drugs.
• Only 50 percent of patients take their medication as prescribed.
• This means that we lose half of the benefit of prescription drugs through human
error.
• This costs the systems billions in negative health outcomes: 100 billion.
 Ex: Healthcare institutions losing thousands of dollars because of missed medical
appointments due to poor reminders
• Research:
o Use of visuals for recall:
 “…Visual aids can help [people] organize information in a way that enhances [their]
memory's encoding mechanisms. Visual aids may help enhance [people’s] memory's
retrieval systems. Retrieval occurs when [a person’s] memory brings information out of
storage and reverses processes that occurred during encoding. Long-term memory builds
permanent mental images and schema or networks of information about things that [a
person] thinks about. Concept maps may help reduce cognitive load and help [people]
store information in long-term memory, because these maps allow [people] to visualize
mental schemas that parallel [their] long-term memory storage.
• Citation: http://www.livestrong.com/article/291585-the-importance-of-visual-aids-for-
memory/#ixzz286XEsPwY
 Pictographs (visual representation of words) have been used in non-literate societies to help
people remember spoken instructions and, today, they could be used to help non-literate
people remember spoken medical instructions. This study tested the hypothesis that
pictographs can improve recall of spoken medical instructions. Mean correct recall was
85% with pictographs and 14% without (P<0.0001) indicating that pictographs can
enhance memory of spoken medical instructions – often to a very high level.

3. • Citation: Peter S Houts, Rebecca Bachrach, Judith T Witmer, Carol A Tringali, Julia A Bucher,
Russell A Localio. Using pictographs to enhance recall of spoken medical instructions. Patient
Education and Counseling - 1 October 1998 (Vol. 35, Issue 2, Pages 83-88)
 With spoken medical instructions only 14% of the information was remembered correctly,
compared with over 80% when pictographs were used. 1
Simple pictographs, with a clear
and direct link between the picture and its meaning, are most effective. 24
• Citation: Houts PS, Witmer JT, Egeth HE, Loscalzo MJ, Zabora JR. Using pictographs to enhance
recall of spoken medical instructions II. Patient Educ Couns 2001;43:231 -42
 There is reason to believe that age-related memory impairments arise from defects in
encoding and storage rather than retrieval.10
With respect to medical information, a
moderate inverse relation has been reported between age and amount of information
recalled correctly.
• Citation: Ley P. Memory for medical information. Br J Soc Clin Psychol 1979;18:245-55
 In sum, the ageing process engenders difficulty in encoding and subsequently remembering
medical information, especially that which contradicts pre-existing beliefs. Memory also
fades more rapidly. A practical implication is that, especially in old people, clinicians should
not leave a long gap between providing information and seeking the patient's decision.
• Citation: McGuire LC. Remembering what the doctor said: organization and older adults' memory
for medical information. Exp Aging Res 1996;22:403 -28
Summary: Visual communication aids are especially effective in low-literacy patients, but
video or multimedia techniques do not improve memory performance or adherence to
therapy.
o Medical Supplies Covered by Insurance Companies:
 Fact: Each year in the United States, approximately $120 billion is spent on durable
medical equipment and supplies; 15% of which is paid for out-of-the-pocket of
consumers.
 Types of Equipment:
• Durable medical equipment (DME) as well as the terms home medical equipment
(HME) and home healthcare equipment are used interchangeably. They refer to
re-usable, long lasting, medical equipment for use in the home that helps
individuals to function on a daily basis.
• Durable medical supplies (DMS) refers to home medical supplies or disposable
medical supplies.
• Assistive Technology (AT) and Assistive Devices are terms favored by the
independent living community and refer to any item, electrical or mechanical that
helps individuals with their activities of daily living. The official definition according
to the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 is as follows: “any item, piece of
equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially, modified, or
customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of
individuals with disabilities.
 Insurance Coverage on DME, DMS or AT:
• Requires authorization by licensed professions: MD, OT, PT, Speech
• A prescription may be very helpful, but not always needed
• Insurance coverage usually requires a prescription or a “justification statement”.
The higher degree of medical education held by the authorizing party, the more
likely insurance will be to pay for the item
• Medicare, Medicaid will usually cover most, if not all, of the equipment’s cost

4. • Other programs that help elderly: state-based assistance programs, waiver
programs, veterans assistance, non-profits, tax deductions for DME, etc
o Visuals Improve Staff Productivity:
 “The Ticket Home,” [implemented by Virginia Mason] is a large whiteboard in each
patient’s room that includes important medical goals to achieve for discharge, such as
eating solid foods and having stable lab values. When a nurse walks into a room to
answer a call light, for example, she immediately knows basic information about what the
patient needs. Providing information just-in-time helps eliminate waste from the nurse’s
day.
(b) Description (specify its novel features) –
o A memory aid
o A durable medical equipment (DME), supply (DMS) or assistive technology (AT) that
can be covered by insurance companies
o Affordable for the 15% of consumers that may pay out of pocket: private market
(c) Purpose of invention
(what problems does it solve, and how does it differ from and/or improve upon present technology) –
o Improves recall of medical information for patients because it is a consistent external
memory aid located in a functional setting that can also be taken home
o A functional adaptation to existing lo-tech devices (e.g., memory books/aids)
o Provides nursing with improved productivity and important information for specific
activities (e.g., transfers, meals, etc)
(d) What are the immediate or future applications of the invention? -
o Improved productivity for patient and staff for recall of important medical information
o Healthcare is moving towards less intervention in hospital settings and more tools for
use in the home
o Can be attached to functional settings (e.g., hospital tables, home desks, etc)
4.Closest existing publications and/or patents relating to the invention (please attach reprints)
(a) Patent Name: Displaying Important Information with Visual Cues to Indicate both the Importance
and the Urgency of Information. Patent No. 7,437,679B2 Date: October 14, 2008.
(b) Patent Name: Visual-Aid Portfolio. Patent No. 2, 975, 539.
(c) Patent Name: Medical Reminder System and Messaging Watch. Patent No. 6,075, 755 Date:
May 12, 1997
(d) Patent Name: Patient Communication Device and Method. Patent No. 2005/0171818 Date:
August 4, 2005
(e) Patent Name: Reminder System. Patent No. 5,060, 794 Date: October 29, 1991
5.Planned or prior publication (of any kind) and/or oral presentation of the invention.
Not Applicable.
6.Potential licensees or suggested companies to be approached (If the invention has been disclosed to
industry representatives, please provide details.)
Not Applicable.
7.Contribution of any organization(s) or sponsor(s) [other than NYU] to the invention in staff, money,
equipment, facilities or materials. (If any grant monies were involved, please indicate the source, grant
number and value of contribution.)
Not Applicable.

5. Source(s)/Sponsor(s): Not Applicable.
Grant #: Not Applicable.
Value: Not Applicable.
8. Did you use any biological materials provided by a third party in the course or performance of this
research
_______Yes ____x____No
If Yes please specify and elaborate
9. Is this invention associated with a School of Medicine Center of Excellence?
If so, which one? ________________________.
10. Please list the home addresses and citizenships of each inventor.
3 Stuyvesant Oval, Apartment 9F
New York City, New York 10009
U.S. Citizenship
SIGNATURES:
The inventors: Date: 09-04-2012
Frida Matute
SIGNATURE OF DEPARTMENT
CHAIRMAN IS MANDATORY
I have read and understand the foregoing disclosure:
The Chairman of the Department: ____________________________________
Date:_____________