Equipment for individuals with limb deficiency

Equipments

1.Introduction 

it has been defined the amputation is removal of all or part of the extremities, and it cause a decrease of level of activities. The person who had an amputation is in-need to have a proper rehabilitation program as early as possible especially at the time of the hospitalization under special considerations. Also to provide these group with compensatory equipment’s to reach their maximum functional independency.
So far, the patient will need proper external support and equipment to transport, to be mobile, to do their Activity of Daily Living (ADL), and to be involved in the community. However, the prescription of the assistive device and the walking aid will depend on multidisciplinary team after evaluating different factors and involving the patient in this decision.

2. Risk assessment

Risk factor Assessment Tools

Falls are happened usually due to certain reasons for different ages that may lead to serious outcomes. Such assessment tools are implemented to demonstrate these risk factors of falls.
Gait and balance assessment (1) such as; Time up and Go (TUG), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Tinetti Performance Oriented Mobility Assessment (POMA), Dynamic Gait Index, and Get Up and Go test. These assessment tools are reflecting the relation between the balance and the ability of a person to walk in appropriate way. It's explaining and determining for how long the person can keep his balance during gait, as well as to apply few kinds of ADL while moving from point to another, to identify the level of balance effect on gait.
These tools used in the evaluation of the person gait quality, and then it may help to achieve the key factor of falls for the patient, which may help to find out management technique for this patient. Also the previous tools may reflect other aspects that could be affected such as:
- Mental problems.
- Language difficulties.
- Short term verbal memory.
- Construct ability.
- Calculation problems.
It's important to initiate those tools of assessing the patients since hospitalization, it will help in better and earlier effective treatment plan. Certain centers and health care institutions are participated to provide and produce several kinds of assessment to evaluate patient's risk to falls in different ages. These assessment tools consider as important part to keep the patient's safety, and to protect him/her from expected injuries.

Falls Risk Assessment and Management Plan (FRAMP):

According to the FRAMP (2) which is one of the tools that evaluating the patient's risk to falls since the early stage of hospitalization. FRAMP is passing through three similar stages of assessment during specific period of time which identifying the history of falls, using of walking aids, cognitive impairment and other urinary and fecal problems.
The FRAMP is explaining important practice points for patients who are complaining from (coagulopathy) and under anticoagulant and antiplatelet therapy are more vulnerable for intracranial hemorrhage due to recurrent falls, as well as patients with osteoporosis who may develop more fractures as a result of falls.
Moreover, the individualized intervention for specific risks such as:
- Mobility risks.
- Functional ability risks.
- Medication/ Medical condition risks.
- Cognitive state risks.
- Continence/ elimination risks.
Each one of the above risks is assessing the level of patient's ability to perform the test with an appropriate intervention for each problem.
FRAMP has minimum intervention to be applied on ALL kinds of patients and appropriate as well and they are:
- Provision of information for the patients about the environment (Toilet, bed and ward) as well as to explain them about the call bell to facilitate their needs.
- Education of patients about mobility aids and to enable them to use it in proper way.
- Improve their awareness about the conditions that increase the risks of falls in order to prevent it.
- Improve the quality of surrounding environment to reduce the risk of falls (proper lights and remove obstacles).

3.Wheelchairs

Manual Wheel chair

The WHO (3) defied the manual wheel chair as: “Wheel Chair propelled by the users or pushed by another person, and it is appropriate when it meet the user needs and environmental condition”.
The manual wheel chairs reached good level of technology, at the same time some challenges to provide the PwDs are exist. According to WHO statistics 2008 (3); 10 % out of 650 million PwDs are in need for a Wheel Chair, that can reflect the huge need of the wheel chair and the access to provide it.

Why the Wheel chair is important for the PwDs?
- To avoid immobility and bed ridden.
- To prevent secondary complications.
- To involve the users in the community activities.
- To increase the opportunity for education, employment, and social interaction.
The picture below shows the main component for the wheel chair.

References

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