With AIR ZOOM PULSE, NIKE enters the health segment

As of December 2019, are on sale the new NIKE sneakers, AIR ZOOM PULSE, specially designed for health professionals and their collaborators.

The purpose of the brand is to provide these users with suitable footwear for this specific activity, which includes long hours of day and night guards, and long working times.

The initiative arose from an alliance of NIKE with the OHSU Doernbecher children's hospital in Portland, Oregon in the United States, where they listened to and gathered the opinions and needs of the protagonists themselves -doctors, nurses, etc.- told in their stories of medical work.

It is very common for medical personnel to use the famous “Crocs” or similar during work shifts so that the time in hospitals is more bearable, and their feet do not suffer too much for so many hours of activity.

To attend specific needs

According to the NIKE report, its designers took into account the long hours that many of these workers spent standing, the main characteristics of the movements and the frequency with which liquids are spilled on the foot.

Finally, they concluded that they should focus on comfortable footwear, with a good volume of last and an adequate adjustment and fit, sufficient grip to the floor -anti-slip - and easy to put them on and take them off. Also enough versatility, to withstand hasty movements in emergency situations.

Functional design

“Nurses walk between 6 and 8 km. and they sit less than an hour during a 12 hour shift. The job is physically and mentally demanding. The need was an anatomical, simple, lightweight, flexible, easy to put on and take off, and simple to clean footwear”, said project technicians.

The answer was a shoe with a “Pulse” rubber sole with a high grip and traction, with a pattern in the sole that guarantees a rapid dispersion of liquids, and a flexible and padded insole with a “Zoom Air” heel with cushioning properties.

Taking as a reference a structure of a mule, the NIKE AIR ZOOM PULSE design presents a simplified upper, mix of casual and sporty, which offers an adjustment, cushioning and traction system that works in coordination to ensure the well-being of the foot. The cut has no laces and, on the back, an elastic band securely holds the heel inside the shoe.

The modeling consists of designs of different colors, combinations and prints, which visually recreate the "classic sanitary shoe."