Personal care aids

For anyone with mobility or movement difficulties there are many challenges that need to be overcome in order to live a normal life. Tasks like getting around and dressing are the obvious obstacles, however personal care and maintaining good standards of hygiene are an often overlooked area that can be assisted by the use of modified and ergonomically designed aids.

The importance of being able to wash properly and take care of personal hygiene is of great importance to everyone and, when it comes to retaining dignity and independence, the significance of these simple jobs becomes paramount. They determine how someone feels about themselves and their life.

Factors like age, illness, and loss of mobility resulting from an accident or disability can make personal care tasks a big challenge. Even so, there are many cleverly designed aids that can counter these challenges and many enable the retention of independence for a more prolonged or indefinite period of time.

What are the challenges?

Washing, toileting and grooming are activities that most of us take for granted, however these tasks can be trying for anyone with reaching, gripping, bending or movement problems. Poor balance, sensitivity to pressure and limited vision can also make these daily activities more than a little difficult to accomplish.

As an example, one of the big problems when it comes to tasks like washing, cutting nails and brushing hair is holding the implement or grooming aid in question.

The first test is being able to hold the item and control how it is used, and the second task is to be able to reach or direct it to the point where it is needed. If one or both of these requirements cannot be met, a carer or third party will be required to provide assistance. When this is the case independence and a degree of personal control and dignity will be lost.

How can these challenges be overcome?

Good designs, strong yet lightweight materials, and an understanding of the challenges involved in personal grooming have led to a significant number of personal care aids becoming readily available.

The gripping or holding element can be helped by the use of occupational therapy inspired ergonomic designs that take account of how a particular aid is used. Ease of use solutions include, making the handles larger with greater diameters, plus finger and grasp profiled grips that are moulded to the contours of gripping fingers. These also make securely holding an aid more comfortable and less of a muscular strain.

The stretching and reaching element can be addressed by extending the handle, or the section between the handle and the point of action, of an aid. This can help to eliminate the reaching problem and make inaccessible areas of the body accessible again. By making this extended section hinged, flexible or bendable, reaching around the body, the head or the legs becomes much easier.

The final key to making many of these personal care products easier to use is the materials from which they are made. With handles in particular, soft touch easy grip materials are easier to hold. This means that the grip is better, they are less likely to slip and this in turn gives the person using them more confidence in their use.

For a complete listing of these and many other aids you can use the sectional index to the left, or return to the main Health and Mobility Store menu by using this link Main Index page.