Mar 02 2010

Stay In your own home – Five Ideas To keep You From Going To A Nursing Home

Category: Elderly Care — Heidi Hoffman @ 6:59 pm

Most people – 89% – desire to stay at home as they age. This jumps to 95% for people over 75. Fortunately, the majority of us do get to live our lives at home. With new technologies coming all the time, this will become even more likely. Here are 5 tips to help.

1. Decide exactly what you can do. You need to do this every 6 months to a year. As we age, our bodies can react in unpredictable ways. Take an inventory of what you can and can\’t do by yourself. If you\’re unsure, get a trustworthy loved one to help you decide. A few areas to think about: Are you able to prepare your own meals? Are you able to get down and up the steps safely? Can you drive safely? Will you remember to take your medication? Each of these is a important strength. If you cannot do all of these items well, don\’t worry about it right now. There are methods to bridge the gaps that don\’t involve going to a nursing home.

2. Ask for help. After you have assessed your own strengths you need to get help in the areas where you require it. There are lots of services now available that will help you remain in your house permanantly. You can ask friends and family members to help. For instance, if you have difficulty driving, you could set up a rotation together with your children, grandchildren, neices or nephews to take you shopping or to the salon. It\’s not always easy to ask for help, but your family is generally willing to give it, especially if all the load doesn\’t fall on one individual.

3. Get your house outfitted. If you are having trouble getting around any part of your home, you can usually address the issue with mobility equipment. A stairlift or handgrip for the tub can make a world of difference.

4. Use Technology. Those \”I\’ve fallen and can\’t get up\” ads might be funny, but slipping is a serious issue. A bad fall can break your hip and leave you immoble and not able to get help. So use technology for your advantage. An emergency call button or a mobile phone can literally save your life. This will not just set your mind at ease, but also make all your family members feel better.

5. Live your best life. Of all Five tips, this is the most significant one of all. If you enjoy life and enjoy the relationships in your life, then you\’ll find that all of your life is more satisfying and better, and will also be much easier for you to stay in your house long-term.

For more information on acorn stair lifts visit us at WellnessDigest.com

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Oct 19 2009

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Straight Stair Lifts

Category: Business and Industry — Brinkmann Hamer @ 1:04 am

Straight stair lift is a much-awaited solution especially for disabled persons who are unable to climb the stairs of their own homes to visit a common bathroom that is situated upstairs. To adjust to their immobile lifestyle, such people have to leave their beloved houses and move in to day care centres that offer better conditions. Instead of changing residence, straight stair lifts can be installed for persons who have just survived a major accident and are unable to ascend or descend the stairs, or those who are permanently disabled.

Two kinds of stair lift systems for homes are available in the market. One of these has a chair fitted on top of it, so a person can sit atop it and easily travel up or down stairs. The other type has a stand, to which a person can affix the wheel chair or even stand on it. However, the former type of straight stair lift system is more popular because it is more safe and easy to use.

The prominent feature of this lift, which makes it such a favourite with everyone, is its convenience provided to the disabled person for whom the lift is installed. It saves you from the financial worries and difficulties faced while changing or remodeling your home, especially in such cases where the washrooms are situated on the second.

Straight stair lifts are used in a multipurpose way. It serves not only to take persons up or down the house, but it can carry heavy loads as well. These lifts can carry loads between 300-500 Ibs, which is fair enough! Almost all the household stuff can be transferred from one floor to the other.

Also, if a person is really tired and does not feel like climbing the long flight of stairs, straight stair lifts can be utilised for this purpose of riding upstairs. Children find it amusing, and they would invent different games related to it.

Straight stair lifts are safe and easy to use for both children and the elders. Older people who do not have the strength to carry themselves up and down the stairs find these stair lifts quite relieving, as they do not have to resort to leaving their beloved homes because of difficulty in movement.

Straight stair lifts come with their own set of problems. No modern technology comes without problems. The problem with these lifts is the costly machinery that operates these lifts. Not only this, the high cost of electricity also affects the monthly budget a lot. If for any reason, the lift stops working, then you shall face the difficulty of finding its parts in the local market. The repairing job is also taxing, and takes a lot of time. In normal cases, it may take up to 4 weeks to get it back in the house! This is a troublesome part for a person who may need it in emergency, or in case of an accident.

Brinkmann Hamer is a technology expert. More information about straight stairlifts is available. You can buy these stairlifts at his recommended websites at http://www.churchills-stairlifts.co.uk.

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Oct 10 2009

Curved Stairlifts: Attributes, Functions And Options

Category: Business and Industry — Brinkmann Hamer @ 6:37 pm
by Brinkmann Hamer

Straight stairways are common configuration for stairs that do not have any bend, curve or landing at some point. However, in most houses, stairs turn either left or right at the bottom or at the top. Similarly, those who have spiral staircases or staircases with middles landing, all need curved stairlifts for their staircases.

Usually, curved stair lifts have heftier price tags than the straight ones. Nearly in all available staircases, these types of stairlifts are made-to-measure or are custom-built.

These curved stairways have many advanced characteristics that can not be seen in a straight stair lift when it comes to available attributes, functions and options in this type of stair lift. They are purpose-built since they are especially developed to cover those bends, which are present in the stairs. Their price, feasible attributes, and functions are dependent upon their bends and complexity.

These types of stairlifts do not have a good resale value, as they are developed for particular kind of curves, which exist in a particular set. However, their other components including batteries, motor, and chair can be used on different rails. These days, you can see an array of curved stairlifts models available in the market, designed for a specific curved staircase.

These days, you will see curved flights of steps in numerous houses and commercial buildings, as these kinds of staircases are considered crucial for the decoration and elegance of a house or building. However, it is also a fact that it is often really hard for the elderly or physically disabled when they have to use these staircases.

This is where curved stairlifts come to their rescue, making circumstances quite simple for them. These curved stair lifts have the loading capacity within a range of 275lbs-350lbs, and standard features in these stair chair lifts include automatic sensors, key locks, seatbelts, wraparound arms, pressure controls for moving up and down , cut-off switch for swivel seat etc.

These curved stair lifts are also procurable in a big range nowadays, and can be easily installed on either side of your stairway. Unfortunately, their installation is a little more difficult than that of the straight stair lifts, and similarly, these curved stair lifts have a raised installation cost when compared with that of the straight stair lifts.

Bruno and Thyssenkeupp are two famous developers of these curved stair lifts. These makers have developed some models, which can work for both straight and curved staircases. In addition, some models from these stair lift makers portray dual application features that are applicable on curved as well as straight staircases. Besides these well-known models, you also have many other alternatives in this regard and your choices are also dependent upon your needs and prices that seem feasible to you. A few of these curved stair lifts cost less and they appear to contain all those characters and uses that give complete mobility and safety solutions to those wanting maximum performance and safety from such devices.

About the Author:
Brinkmann Hamer is a technology consultant. More information about straight stairlifts is available. You can purchase these stairlifts at his recommended websites at http://www.churchills-stairlifts.co.uk.

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