CVA stroke patient: getting out of bed

[jjose_01]

I think,the description is too technical for the primary audience(patient's daughter)! Let your physios read this forum and let them do it for your father. Hope we helped you by not just adding years to your father's life but also adding life to his years!

[mcasus]

I don't think the reply is too technical, since in my 30+ years of experience, 10 of them in home care, I have done much teaching to caregivers of how to help with transfers--I think more credit needs to be given to caregivers. It is merely a question of mechanics and ergonomics, and you don't have to be a physio to practice it. In my home care practice I rely heavily on caregivers to carry out the exercises in between my visits, and am rarely disappointed. It may well be that the gentleman concerned might not learn how to do this transfer, but regardless of that the steps outlined are the steps I would teach a caregiver in order to help their loved one transfer. It isn't rocket science, merely a question of good body mechanics. The professional association I belong to publishes a pamphlet for families on how to transfer patients, and families/caregivers have found this to be extremely helpful.

Often when patients are seen in rehab but not at home, we as physios assume that the learning that takes place in rehab will be easily transferred at home. This is not always the case. Once at home there may be architectural barriers, physical limitations of the care givers, environmental constraints, psychological constraints, caregiver burnout, patient demotivation.... What happens in the clinic is seldom what happens at home, and we physios need to be cognizant of that in our approach to patients who have acquired handicaps and are returning to the home setting.