MRS. ROBERTSON (B.S.N., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; M.S.N., University of Minnesota, Minneapolis) is a nursing supervisor at the University of Minnesota Hospitals. The emergency cart was designed by Clarence McKelvey, senior general mechanic in the University of Minnesota Hospitals engineering department. The head nurses involved in the planning included Dianne Bartels, Jan Eide, and Kathy Nixa. Although we tried many different types of carts, we were not satisfied that when a patient emergency occurred on the ward, all the needed supplies, medications, and equipment would be readily available on any of them. In discussing this matter, the head nurses from three medical stations decided a new design was required. Their first concern was the items that should be available on the cart and in what quantities. After reaching agreement among themselves and with the medical staff on the required medications and supplies, they began discussing the cart design. At this point, they realized their need for assistance from the hospital's engineering department. Fortunately, the senior mechanic in the department is very skilled in cabinetry. On their first meeting with him, the nurses outlined their needs-a compact, easily movable cart that could be closed when not in use, but would provide complete visibility and ready accessibility of all medications and supplies, and that would have a working surface for preparing and recording medications. A tall order! It became apparent that the use of any drawers would violate the criteria; on this basis several designs had to be rejected. Finally, the design shown at right was developed. The size of the cart was then determined by collecting, in one room, all the equipment, supplies, and medications the cart would hold and measuring the space required to store them. Thus, on the completely stocked cart,