(Springfield, MO) -- It's a dilemma you no doubt run into every day: you've used a public restroom, hopefully washed your hands and now you're faced with a germ-covered handle to open the door.

From hand sanitizers to cleaning wipes for your desk, people are more aware of how quickly germs can spread.

In a public restroom, your best defense from germs is usually a paper towel to shield yourself from a dirty handle.

But a group of Springfield inventors say they've found a better way.

"What we wanted to do was come up with a way where you could use the bottom of your foot to open the door," Mike Sewell says.

And that's how the Step-n-Pull was born.

"We've just noticed a growing awareness of germs in the restroom," co-inventor Sewell says. "People use paper towels to get out and there was a real need to have an alternative way to open the door without grabbing the handle."

Sewell and a few co-workers decided to invent that alternative. They came up with some prototypes and settled on the final design, and the name speaks for itself.

Their co-workers at Alltell loved it, so the inventors expanded their operation.

"We're based here in Springfield so we really use Springfield as a test-pad, and we approached restaurants," Sewell says.

When they approached Randy Halterman, who owns eight Wendy's Restaurants here in town, he was initially hesitant but decided to give it a shot.

"We had several customers who made comments to us about needing paper towels so they could pull the handles," Halterman says.

Turns out Step-n-Pull came at the perfect time: Wendy's got rid of paper towels in its restrooms and added hand dryers to eliminate waste and extra cost.

"The way we know it's getting used is because it's dirty and we have to clean them a lot," Halterman says. "That's how we know they're getting used."

So you've heard from the co-inventor but what does an average person who uses these restrooms every day think about it? We got a first-time user to try out the Step-n-Pull for us.

"Sometimes I'll use my foot to go up there and click that plunger down if I flush the toilet," Mike Nagella says.

Nagella says he can be a bit of a "germaphobe" after years of using public restrooms.

He'd never heard of the Step-n-Pull before but quickly got the hang of it.

"I liked it because you never know if the last person who was in there washed his hands when you grab onto that thing," he says. "So I like it."

The inventors say there are other products out there so we can ditch the paper-towel method. They just hope their product is the best at flushing away the germs.

The product costs $16.75. You can also use the Step-n-Pull at other restaurants around town like Applebee's, T.G.I. Fridays and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Sewell says they hope to install it in more chains to catch the attention of the restaurants' national offices.

He says the hardest part of inventing the Step-n-Pull was marketing the product. Business experts say you'll want to have a prototype first so you can show companies exactly how it works.

We spoke with a local communications company that says it reviews these types of inventions. You can call 1-800-966-2400 to get more information.