Improve Safety & Enhance Quality of LIfe

Published by Angela May for Total Hygiene in Local Government and also in Health, Housing

Investment equivalent to a ‘meal deal’ a day could save care home providers from much of the cost of injuries to both residents and staff arising from manual handling, through an innovative piece of equipment available from Total Hygiene.

New research has shown that the average nursing home worker lifts more than 10,000lbs of human weight a day, causing almost 500 injuries to employees a year and thousands of workdays lost; transfer from wheelchair to toilet was rated the most stressful task. Yet many of these injuries to both residents and staff in care homes could potentially be avoided, for as little as £3/day, claims Total Hygiene….

“The transfer of residents from wheelchairs, or helping them transfer from a walking frame, to the toilet, is among one of the riskiest procedures because of the bilateral movement involved, and it is a procedure undertaken more than any other in the day: the average person goes to the toilet up to eight times a day!

“Relevant lifting equipment, such as an Aerolet toilet lifter, could actually help save residents’ lives, and reduce risk to both residents and staff,” says Robin Tuffley, marketing manager for Total Hygiene.

To help the care industry improve the statistics, Total Hygiene has developed an innovative rental scheme, to complement the existing purchase options for both pieces of equipment. From only £95/month- equivalent to just £3/day- a mobile Aerolet lifter can be hired for as little or as long a period as required.

The Aerolet replicates the natural motion of sitting down and standing up, automatically and smoothly lowering the user over and onto the toilet and then raising them to standing whilst ensuring their centre of gravity and thus balance remains stable. It is all controlled by the push of a button via integral arm supports, which simultaneously provide additional bracing as the resident transfers from wheelchair or frame to the toilet. Versions can be fixed over a particular WC, or be moved from one WC to another as required, with options to lift and lower vertically, or tilt for users with joint flexibility limitation.

Adds Robin, “Equipment such as the Aerolet, which help restore some or all of a person’s independence when toileting have the added, psychological and ‘beyond price’ benefits of enhancing the resident’s dignity, and reducing the carer’s provision of assistance in a basic, private function.”

The Aerolet is exclusively supplied by Total Hygiene, the UK’s leading supplier of toileting solutions for the elderly and disabled. The company not only supplies but can install, commission and service the units- a unique offering in the market. Full details are available on the company’s website www.clos-o-mat.com, via a dedicated care/nursing home button