A child’s trip to a doctor’s office often includes anxiety, frustration and tears. And if the child refuses to behave, that can be the parent’s reaction as well.
“I’ve been exposed to the long wait times, and the distress of the patients and the parents while they’re waiting for the doctor,” said Wesley Chapel resident Katy Gabriel.
Gabriel has experienced that distress from both sides of the pediatric office. As a mother, she knows what it’s like to wait with upset or bored children who don’t want to be there in the first place. And as a nurse for more than 20 years, she’s seen pediatric doctors try to heal unhappy children and deal with unhappy families.
(Michael Murillo/Staff Photos)
It’s a setting that could use a little creativity and fun. And, Gabriel has invented something she thinks will provide just that.
Her company, Squirrely Scrolls, provides a different type of exam table paper, the crinkly sheets that get replaced with each new patient. Normally a simple white, Gabriel’s paper includes games, puzzles and coloring opportunities. With a series of six panels that repeat throughout the roll, the exam table becomes an activity center for patients and their siblings.
“When the doctor comes in, not only are the kids occupied and entertained, they’re in better moods. and it also keeps them on the table where the doctor wants them,” Gabriel said.
The inspiration for the product came from her family. When her 10-year-old son, Christian, sustained a football injury, he had to sit in the room while the office dealt with a malfunctioning x-ray machine.
“It took forever. It was driving me crazy. I was peeking out the door waiting for the doctor to come,” recalled Christian, now 11 and an assistant in designing the Squirrely Scrolls. After testing out his mother’s idea, he agrees it would make long waits more tolerable and improve the exam room setting.
While there are obvious benefits for the patients, the advantages for the office are just as significant, Gabriel said. Calmer, happier children make for an improved office visit experience, which improves patient satisfaction and client retention.
Plus, the crayons are easy to clean, and the doctor can tear off more sheets, as needed.
And, since the children want to be on the table, exams can be completed more efficiently and with less negativity.
More than 50 doctors — working in around two dozen offices — currently use Squirrely Scrolls in their exam rooms, Gabriel said, and there have been frequent re-orders.
The addition of activities has benefits that even the doctors notice.
“Our patients and their parents love Squirrely Scrolls,” said Dr. Samir Douidar from
Night Owl Pediatrics Urgent Care in Tampa, via email. “The activities on the paper help to keep the children occupied while I perform my exams, making the visit more productive and beneficial for all.”
Those activities get refreshed every so often, with hangman giving way to a maze in the most recent theme.
Currently, the paper comes in Amazon Rain Forest and Calypso Caribbean, with dinosaurs and outer space themes being considered for the future.
For now, the business has become so successful that Gabriel has cut back on her nursing duties to tend to its growth, and she’s recruited the family to help.
In addition to Christian, her other son, Mike, has worked on the outlines of the animals. And, husband Michael handles the computer design. They now have a warehouse in Wesley Chapel to store the scrolls, and hope to find a sponsor on the paper and a distributor to expand nationally as well.
For now, Gabriel is motivated by the feedback she’s getting from the offices that use her product, and the knowledge that she’s helping families make a necessary appointment a little more bearable while doctors give patients a better office experience.
“I hear the same thing over and over again (from participating offices). ‘We love it.’ They all use the ‘L’ word,” Gabriel said. “They can’t get enough of it, and they won’t go back to white. I promise you that.”
For more information about Squirrely Scrolls, email , or visit SquirrelyScrolls.com.
Published September 2, 2015