The “devastating” impact of caring for someone with Alzheimer’s has been eased and made safer for Julie Murray and her son Harry.
Her husband and partner of 35+ years Robert was diagnosed in 2016. She has watched his decline from a proud, always immaculate man into someone who is now non verbal, double incontinent and cannot stand.
His deterioration meant she and her son Harry were finding it harder and harder to safely support Robert to get upstairs, especially to go to the toilet.
Their Occupational Therapist, Laura Kelly from Doncaster City Council, was horrified when she saw that Harry was having to carry his father on his back to get Robert upstairs. The danger of trying to transfer Robert, as a dead weight, into a wheelchair at the top of the stairs made choice of a stairlift both impractical and risky.
Prescription of AAT’s S-Max Sella stairclimber eliminated all that risk and could be quickly achieved by re-issuing one already within the Council’s Equipment Stores: no delay whilst DFG funding was processed. Requiring no installation, we just needed a couple of hours to train Julie and Harry in the S-Max Sella’s safe operation.
Once Robert is safely sat on the stairclimber, Julie and Harry can easily move him, at whatever speed they feel comfortable. They go up and down the stairs and onto whichever room they are aiming for- lounge, bathroom, bedroom. There is no need for them to transfer Robert at the top of the stairs.
The battery-powered S-Max Sella is Class 1 Medical Device certified. It moves Robert over 300 steps from a single charge, at a consistent rate controlled by Julie or Harry. S-Max’s unique ComfortStep feature delivers a smooth, comfortable climb or descent. This automatically adjusts to variation in riser height, gently braking on the edge of each riser to facilitate the process for the operator.
“The S-Max has changed our lives! The Sella is brilliant, perfect and the people at AAT give good service. It has meant I can keep Robert’s routine, life, as normal as possible, getting him up to bed. With only having one toilet at the time, upstairs, the Sella meant I can get him there in time. And even with a wetroom downstairs now, the Sella is still in daily use, getting Robert up in the morning and to bed at night.”
“It’s made daily life so much safer: it was so dangerous Harry carrying his dad on his back up the stairs, especially as we have two little dogs that would follow him! It was almost impossible for me to move Robert if Harry wasn’t there. The S-Max has been a life saver.”
Julie Murray
Since being introduced some 20 years ago, AAT’s stairclimbers have become the industry leader. With their impeccable safety record, thousands are now in use nationwide, in private and social housing, care homes, ambulances and hospitals.
You can find out more about the Sella stairclimber here: https://www.aatgb.com/s-max-sella/.
