Project Overview

Ambulation of residents in long-term care requires a minimum of two healthcare practitioners to complete, where one practitioner is responsible for walking with the resident and another would follow closely behind with a wheelchair. Due to limited staff resources, particularly in a long-term care setting, there are typically only two physiotherapists available on a me-limited basis. The Ambulation, Retraining and Mobility Mechanism (ARMM) device is an assistive product that attaches a resident’s wheelchair to their walker. The purpose of this device is to allow the therapists to increase the number of residents they can see, since they can complete the ambulation on their own, without requiring additional support from another therapist or aide. This allows for increased frequency of patients’ ambulation which can lead to improved physical outcomes. In addition, with the lateral bars as a support system, patients feel safer getting proprioceptive feedback when they are leaning to avoid tipping and falling. The purpose of this project is to: (1) Focus on the early stages of technology pre-implementation and employ a user-centred approach to map the workflow at Perley Health, (2) Examine the challenges and opportunities associated with the process, and (3) Test the use of the ARMM device with a group of 15 residents and capture feedback from both the residents and physiotherapists.