Introduction to Moving Safely in the Home
All of us benefit from exercise; being able to move about to stay healthy. Sometimes you will care for someone who has trouble moving about on their own. This person is at risk for falling if not given the right type of help.
Being able to walk through one’s home and moving from a bed to a chair or wheelchair without injury, makes a person feel safe. There are many things that can make moving about in the home hard to do:
- Pain
- Poor Balance
- Weakness
- Loss of movement or strength in a leg
- Surgery of the hip or legs
If you care for an older adult or a person who is seriously ill, you need to know how to reduce their risk of injury. Also, you need to know how to protect yourself from injury when you help someone else. It is important to learn the proper ways to assist them and make their home a safe place to live.
This lesson will show you how to assist a person in walking and transferring safely from a bed to a chair. Also see our lesson on Fall Prevention.
Here is Suzanne’s story:
I take care of my 78 year old dad. About a month ago he fell and broke his right hip. He now needs help getting in and out of bed and moving to a chair, even though he does pretty well walking with a walker. The first time I tried to help him, I almost hurt my back. I pulled a muscle that hurt for a few days. Now, with the help of dad’s physical therapist, I know how to help him get up and move without injuring myself or my dad.