Rehabilitation Equipment

Common lifting and moving procedures in the context of rehabilitation and (re)training:

• Gait training
• Moves in and around the bed
• Assisted active exercises
• Exercises with some weight support
• Training on a treadmill
• Aquatic therapy
• ADL training assistance
• Balance and posture exercises

To help determine what scenarios can benefit from the use of a ceiling hoist, a safe rule to use is this one: If the use of the hoist comfortably helps to alleviate pain or assist with weaknesses associated with mobility, it makes sense to use it. That being said, some patients need more than just a ceiling hoist to assist them, so exercise caution in judging every situation.

Once you’ve determined that the use of a ceiling hoist can help a patient, it’s best to start very slow and determine the right level of lift for the patient. For rehabilitation, it’s important to document the progress made by the patient as more and more weight or independence is granted with each phase of healing. As this progress is seen, different slings can be substituted on the same ceiling hoist, sized according to the patient and their needs. This is why it’s beneficial to carry a full inventory of multiple sling sizes and types because you never know when the need for a specialised sling might arise.

Rehabilitation usually takes the form of a training process over a set period of time, taking as its starting point the functional skill level of the individual user. Rehabilitation exercises can involve moving, positioning, strength training, stretching, active movement exercises and practicing everyday activities. From a purely therapeutic perspective, the objective of rehabilitation is to maintain and increase functional skills as far as possible.

Rehabilitation processes often demand a great deal of the professional therapist, who is required to compensate for the user’s lack of mobility and inability to help himself/herself.

Confidence and security are essential for rapid rehabilitation, and it is here that installing a ceiling hoist can play a key role.

Rehabilitation More Safely

A ceiling hoist system with the appropriate sling can help promote the early mobilisation and training of hospitalised patients in a manner safe for both patient and staff.

Medical, orthopedic and bariatric patients, as well as patients on intensive care wards, all benefit from lifting systems involving ceiling hoists and slings.

A ceiling hoist can be used to test patients’ seated balance capabilities – when sitting on the edge of the bed, for example.

If patients start to feel dizzy while sitting securely in the sling, they can be helped back to bed quickly and easily without having to lift them manually. Similarly, intubated patients attached to monitors can be lifted up and into an easy chair positioned next to their bed – thus promoting early mobilisation.

A ceiling hoist also makes balance/gait training safer for both the patient and the care staff. Patients feel safe and secure in the walking sling and can start to move around without the risk of falling.