Thank You Medical Workers - Doctor Satchel Bags

Thank You Medical Workers, you are saving our lives. We appreciate especially in this terrible time, the risks that you take, your great sacrifices, and your sincere commitment to help people. The heroic efforts of those in your field through history is celebrated by many, including those of us in the fashion industry. As international purse designer in the new mystery book Kat Out of the Bag, I know the doctor satchel handbag design well. It's a beautiful structure, and so practical. Here you can see one example, including its handle, one on each side. And you can also see the double zipper dangling from the top. Striking, yet understated hardware.

Oh yeah, you can take it from me, Moonjava, Katherine's Purse-onality Museum historian, the doctor satchel bag was copied from something known as the Gladstone bag.

Here's a picture of a Gladstone bag made from ox leather. Hinged luggage was first developed in the mid 19th century. The Gladstone bag is a British patent registered by Edward Cole. The catchy Gladstone name came from a UK budget minister William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898), who used a red one to carry his paperwork around. And so, his budget briefcase was called the Gladstone bag. He was later the four time Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, as if his bag wasn't fame enough. By the end of the 19th century, the practical advantages of the Gladstone bag were noted by doctors who began using them to carry their medical tools.

MJ, you're right about practical uses. Here's a close up of the side view. You can see the stylish tapering to the top, and how the zippers give you such a very wide opening so you can easily access what;s inside, yet nothing will spill out. In this example the side measures 8" across at its widest point.

This bag, for example measures 8" across at its widest point. Height is 7" and it's 13" across the front. Notice the side paneling that expands across the low zipper opening to prevent the contents from spilling out.

Just look at the light colored interior in this example, so you can easily spot what you're looking for among everything you're carrying in this very roomy interior.Roomy is the key Katherine. A Gladstone bag was really a small suitcase built over a rigid frame. It was designed to separate into two equal sections. The innovation it had was that unlike a suitcase, it was deeper than it was long. Gladstones were made of stiff leather and belted across the top. 

Here's a view of the one interior, zippered side pocket. The rest is all wide open spaces. As a purse, designers have made the doctor satchel a wonderful design that's stylish and easy to carry.

When doctors adopted the Gladstone, they filled it with what they needed when they made their house calls and when they went out on emergencies. Their bags were well worn with all the use of the hard working medics. As medicine changed, it was used less and less. Some doctors in the 20th century would stuff the smaller things they needed in their medical white coat pockets. But recently a different medical bag is being seen at times. Tools like pocket ultrasound machines, a PanOptic ophthalmoscope to check eyes including for abnormalities in arteries, and an ipad which helps in so many ways not only for the doctors but also to explain information to patients, and those are just a few examples. To carry the modern tools a doctor needs, many are now turning to new, modified messenger bags.

And here's our message to all you medical workers/heroes - Thank You!