Q: I care for my husband, and he is having more and more mobility problems. What are some useful tools to help me care for him that I can get for my home?
A: There are many different devices that can assist you in your care of your husband. These days, we have something for everything! All you have to do is identify the areas that are causing your problems and search or ask for help.
Start by thinking through what areas are causing you and your husband stress. It may be difficulty getting in and out of the car, or concerns about bathing, or safety issues when he is home alone.
Try a simple internet search on the issue. Then ask around. If you attend a caregiver support group, that is a great place to ask others who may have been through similar experiences. I can remember years ago I was facilitating a support group and a woman brought up one specific issue she was having.
Her mother had fallen in the bathroom, and she realized that the door opened inward. She had trouble getting the door open to assist her mom because her mom had fallen inside and was blocking the door from opening. The hallway was too narrow to open the door outward.
The caregivers in the support group all gave great ideas and eventually she settled on replacing the door with an accordion door. This solved her problem so that she would not have this issue in the future should her mother need assistance.
Asking around is a great way to find ideas. The key is not to assume nothing can be done. Be proactive and you never know what you may find.
I’d also like to share a few tools that I found particularly useful over the years. One is the Handy Bar. This is a simple tool that can be used to help someone who has trouble getting out of the car. You can buy it online and keep it in the car. Once you open the door to get out you simply slip the handle onto the door latch. Then your loved one can use it to push down when getting out of the car. It is much easier than trying to pull up to get out of the car.
Another useful tool is a gait belt. When someone is in physical therapy this is often used. It is a sturdy belt that allows the caregiver to hold onto the back to help guide their loved one. It is useful for anyone who has balance issues and is much safer than grabbing their arm or pants. They make ones now that are black and vinyl, so they look similar to a regular belt. You can purchase one to have at home for help with guiding or transferring your loved one. If you have never used one before, ask your doctor if a physical therapy prescription to get training in using it would be appropriate.
If medication management is a concern, you can look at purchasing an alarmed medication dispenser. If the bathroom is causing difficulties, look at how to adjust things. Consider a raised toilet seat with handles. Make sure the shower has nonskid mats, grab bars and, if needed, a bath chair with a handheld shower hose.
A low-cost item that can be very useful is a wireless doorbell. Not only can you use it as a doorbell, but also as an alert button in the home. Your loved one can hold the doorbell part and press it to alert you if they need help while you are in another room.
It is worth taking the time to do some research if it may make things easier and safer in the future. Once you find something that helps make sure to share it with others, too. There is a huge community of people who can benefit from learning about these tools, and we can all try to share the information as much as possible.
Martha Shapiro can be reached at Senior Concerns at 805-497-0189 or by email at mshapiro@seniorconcerns.org.
