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What Is A Mobility Aid?

Posted by Jamie McKay on August 29, 2020

the image shows a man on a walker with a woman using a walking stick

If you search ‘mobility aids’ on Google, you will notice the results are so varied that you could literally spend days reading about mobility aids. So, today we are going to try to make life simpler and find out exactly what is a mobility aid?

Mobility Aids – The Basics

A mobility aid is anything that assists a person to do an activity in their daily life and this doesn’t just include walking!

Let’s break down the main categories of walking aids so that you can see what they are and how they can help people.

Walking Aids

There are three main categories of walking mobility aids, walking sticks, walking frames and walkers (also known as tri walkers or rollators dependent upon the number of wheels they have)

We all know about walking sticks and crutches of course, but you may not know just how many different types and designs there are available. With adjustable heights, foldable canes, funky designs, extra support, and contoured handles to name but a few.

Walking frames give you support using two hands when you are walking, sometimes with two wheels at the front and space for an optional bag or caddy.

Often known as Zimmer frames (invented by Norman Metcalfe in the 1950s and patented by the savvy Zimmer Holdings not long afterwards) and they are the next stage up from walking sticks.

Three or four wheeled walkers come in a variety of styles and sizes, even all terrain walkers for off-road outdoor activities such as countryside walks or a round of golf. 

the images shows friends in a pub one of whom is in a walker

Daily Living Aids

Along with walking mobility aids there are products designed to help you with every room in your house, your garden, and your shopping. Let’s have a quick look at a couple of examples.

Bathroom Aids

Using a mobility aid allows you to live more independently in most rooms in your home and outside too. They are specifically designed to help you to carry on living your normal life.

Bathroom aids are a good example of this, and they are specially designed bathroom products to help aid anyone who has a disability, injury or simply needs a little bit more help and support.

There are bathing aids, showering aids, toilet aids and self-care personal aids.

Kitchen Aids

Now that we have reached the halfway point in this article, shall we have a cuppa? There are self-tipping kettles and non-drip mugs and cups for the kitchen. In fact, there is a kitchen mobility aid for pretty much everything you can do in a kitchen!

Medical And Electrical Aids

Mobility aids don’t just help you when you are moving, they can also help make sure that you are fit and healthy enough to move or to get some assistance if you have a problem.

Door and floor sensor alarms automatically inform a carer or next of kin if there is a fall or a door left open, panic alarms can be activated by the wearer in an emergency situation.

Door entry mobility aids and key safe mobility aids help to keep you secure in your home, keep your independence, and keep you in control of your living environment.

Medical pill dispensers and bottle openers ensure that you can get the correct medication at the right time.

the image shows a person being pushed in a wheelchair

Wheelchairs And Stairlifts

Wheelchairs have come a long way since they were first invented in the twelfth century with powered wheelchairs and lightweight travel  wheelchairs that are able to be easily folded and transported.

For help with getting up and down flights of stairs, stairlifts or chair lifts as they used to be called, can be fitted to straight stairs or custom fitted to curved and unusual shaped stairs.

Mental Health Aids

It is important to remember that mobility aids aren’t just to help physical mobility but your mental health mobility too.

Reading aids and magnifying glasses mean that your love of reading and crosswords can continue for many years to come.

Specially designed playing cards, card holders and dominoes let you enjoy a relaxing bit of mental dexterity and gardening aids help your therapeutic hours in the fresh air of your garden.

Dementia Aids

Anything that can help someone living with dementia is definitely worth looking at and there are a wide range of dementia aids to consider, from room signs to colour coded equipment, photo memory frames, timers, memory aids and special night and day clocks.

In Summary - What Is A Mobility Aid?

As you can see, the amount of mobility aid products available is huge and we have only really scratched the surface today!

We will return for a more in depth look at the different types of mobility aids next week. But in the meantime, if you have any questions about mobility aids or want some more information on these mobility products, then please do not hesitate to contact us for a chat.

You can call us free on 0800 255 0498 or email us at heretohelp@abilitysuperstore.com