Stair climber helps care home with mobility problem

A care home in Bolton has received support from a specialist company that creates and supplies disability aids.

Grange Lea care home provides residential care for older people with Alzheimer’s, physical disabilities and decreased mobility and requires the use of specialist equipment to help residents move around the building.

Swallow EMP helped Grange Lea care home by supplying stair climber equipment in the form of a Stair Mate, enabling staff to continue moving residents reliant on using a wheelchair around the home when the lift broke.

Cindy Holt of Grange Lea Residential Home commented, “We had already enquired into purchasing a stair climber when the lift at the home broke down. Swallow EMP loaned us a stair climber within just 12 hours and fortunately we had already received training on operating the equipment in preparation for purchasing.

“Our lift was out of action for some weeks but the high-level of care was maintained with the help of the stair climber thanks to its easy controls and reliability, the service users were also happy with the transport alternative. Having been recommended to us by a local company, I would not hesitate in recommending Swallow EMP to other care homes as their equipment and customer service is second to none.”

Swallow EMP provide specialist disability aids that help with transporting wheelchair users up flights of stairs within health care and education environments when there is no access to a lift.

The Swallow EMP Stair Mate is a self-supported, transportable wheelchair lift, powerful enough to carry up to 160kg resulting it in being suited for use on a daily basis and during an emergency.

Grange Lea care home initially researched a number of alternatives to allow them to transport residents up and down the stairs in the home, including powered stair climbers. Swallow EMP lent the home the Stair Mate when the lift broke down as the staff at the home had already been trained to use.

The battery life of the Stair Mate is suitable to cope with the potential evacuation of a 35 storey building also making it suitable to be used in an environment with multiple occupants, whether this is as the main source of moving residents around or for use in a lift failure in the event of an emergency.

The Stair Mate is available in three different designs, each tailored to hold different load capacities and all with detachable handle to make them portable and easy to store. The mobility aid has been specially designed with caterpillar tracks to grip each step securely whilst in use and there is a safety belt function to ensure the users’ safety.

Swallow Evacuation & Mobility Products offers evacuation chair training, maintenance and sales as well as a range of goods handling devices.