CASE STUDY 7 – Stan’s Story: How the TurnAid can be used with a heavy patient
Reasoning:
Stan has a care package of two carers that visit daily to assist with personal tasks which include turning Stan in bed. Stan weighs 27 stone/171 kg and has minimal ability to participate in the task. As a result, the carers struggled with these tasks and so they were relying on Stan’s friend John who lives with him. John assisted with turning Stan and helped Stan to maintain a side lying position during personal care tasks.
John and the carers were having to support Stan’s weight for prolonged periods of time in the side lying position making the task challenging and not very dignified for Stan.
Conclusion:
The TurnAid was installed and a demonstration was carried out.
The first roll carried out using the TurnAid allowed for a smooth turn from his back onto his side. The carers were able to turn Stan easily with one taking the lead and the second carer providing additional support as required. Due to the momentum of the TurnAid they were able to roll Stan further over on to his side resulting them being able to place the wedge. This eliminated the need for carer support to maintain a side lying position.
During a follow up call soon after provision, John advised that he is able to use the TurnAid to turn Stan on his own during the day enabling Stan to be repositioned more frequently. The carers advised that they were benefitting greatly from the TurnAid as they were able to turn Stan without the need for additional assistance from John and were finding the task much easier to manage.
