How does Adaptive Clothing Help Health Care Professionals?
Adaptive Clothing is an essential item for patients, seniors and caregivers. Adaptive wear makes a healthcare professional’s job easier because it is safer and more convenient to dress and undress the patient. For patients who suffer from more intensive injuries and disabilities, adaptable clothing offers open back solutions that reduce the struggle of dressing a patient as well as preventing injuries in the caregiver.
Here are the 4 important reasons why healthcare professionals should recommend adaptive clothing to their patients:
Adaptable Clothing Reduces Back & Shoulder Pain
Back and shoulder pain are common professional hazards that are experienced by many nursing professionals. Routine tasks such as lifting, transferring, and maneuvering bedridden patients increases the likelihood of physical strain and/or injury.
“Compared to other occupations, nursing personnel are among the highest at risk for musculoskeletal disorders. One of the most difficult aspects of a nurse’s job is the physical challenge of being on his/her feet all day. Also, frequently moving patients in and out of wheelchairs, assistive devices, beds, bathrooms or from place to place. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports nearly 80% of all back and shoulder injuries result from moving patients.”
Adaptive clothing offers:
- Seated Dressing Solutions – Easy Open Back Wheelchair Pants
- Upper Arm Paralysis Solutions – Open Back Tops
- Full Paralysis Solutions – Open Back Dresses, Full Zipper Pants
Adaptive clothing offers dressing solutions that help reduce the physical strain on health care professionals and provides easy dressing solution for the patient.
Ease of dressing
Patients with Alzheimer’s or Dementia behavior may display aggressive behaviors while being dressed.
- Pulling shirts over their face can cause confusion, panic and aggression. Many adaptable clothing items such as; open back tops and open back dresses open up completely reducing the struggle of forcing a shirt over the head. Adaptive clothing offers larger arm openings making it easier to dress patients who refuse to cooperate or patients who have reduced upper arm mobility.
- Adaptive anti-strip suit designs provide effective solutions for patients with dementia and those show aggressive disrobing behaviors. Adaptive clothing allows patients to be dressed from behind reducing potential nursing staff injuries while solving patient disrobing issues.
Faster & Efficient
Adaptive wear is not just easier to put on it’s convenient as well. Caregivers and health professionals will have more time to do things that the patient enjoys doing. Using adaptive clothing makes the morning or night routine much easier and it also provides extensive benefits to long-term care and nursing homes. Nurses and support workers are usually overwhelmed and adaptive clothing will alleviate their stress to a large extent while saving them time and energy.
Improved Patient Interaction
Patients are usually uncomfortable with the idea of asking for help while getting dressed. In addition, being maneuvered in and out of a lift, being transferred to a chair or constantly shifting on the bed increases the risk of patient injury. Adaptive clothing offers comfortable and struggle free dressing options. Health care providers can spend more quality time connecting with their patients with thanks to adaptable clothing instead of going through uncomfortable dressing procedures. Having access to adaptive clothing improves the quality of life for patients and health care professionals.