When shopping for mobility aids and equipment, you may wonder: are stairlifts the best option to allow and provide access to all areas of your home? Well, the answer heavily relies on your distinctive living situation, but yes- in many cases, a stairlift is precisely what consumers need for accessibility, ease, and safety at home.
Thinking of enhancing the access that you have around your home? Perhaps it is difficult to get in and out of your bathroom to use the toilet or bathe; maybe you have started sleeping on a couch or in a downstairs space. When it comes to mobility equipment, all promise to make life easier, but a stairlift may be the most life-changing and transformative of all aids on the market.
Consider the following to determine if stairlifts are the best option for you to access all areas of your home:
Bathroom
Where is your bathroom located? If you need to use the upstairs bathroom, you could have a problem; and many older homes are only equipped with one bathroom for the entire household. Sure, a portable commode is one solution, but if you want to hang on to your autonomy and independence, you may want a little bit more.
A stairlift can be used daily to go up and down stairs smoothly and seamlessly. Users quickly adapt to their stairlift, and the installer will fully demonstrate the operation and performance of the lift. Reputable vendors will make sure that the consumer is comfortable and confident using it before they exit your home. Getting ready for the day, taking a shower, or getting up in the night to use the bathroom is much easier in a multilevel home when you have a stairlift.
Upstairs
Many falls are incidents that could be avoided with proper fall risk assessment. This includes using mobility aids to carry or transport goods throughout the home. If you lose your balance with your arms full, you run a bigger risk of getting hurt. Everyday supplies and items, like laundry or groceries, can be the reason you take a tumble and end up at the ER. A stairlift allows you to carry your load upstairs with ease, and since stairs are one of the prime spots that cause fall-related injury, this makes the home a lot safer overall.
Outdoor Spaces
Depending on the layout of your home, you may need to navigate stairs to get out to your vehicle or off the porch. Stairlifts can be adapted and customized to fit any stairway- even those that are outside in the elements. The ability to get in and out of the home with ease- especially if you live in an upstairs apartment or multi-family dwelling- can be huge and it directly contributes to your autonomy and independence.
Talk to your mobility retailer about other types of lifts that can help with maintaining your freedom, like a vehicle lift or pool lift. These are both constructed to help get you in and out of vehicles and swimming pools, while you continue to enjoy the activities that you love doing.
Bedroom
Consider how a stairlift may change how you go to bed each evening- do you currently sleep upstairs? Many people have given up ever returning to their bedroom to sleep as the risks of going up and down stairs are just too great. A stairlift can provide a little bit of extra support that may make the difference between living independently or needing a caregiver at bedtime. Plus, it gives you the freedom to enjoy your bedroom without turning your living room or family room into a makeshift place to sleep. Start living life on your own terms with a stairlift!
Some Final Words about Accessibility and Stairlifts:
- Stairlifts are more affordable than you may think; some vendors provide rentals to determine if you will use and adapt to a lift in the home. Also, ask your retailer about refurbished models if you are working within the confines of a budget.
- Stairlifts can be fitted to any kind of stairway, including curved, steep, and outdoor steps and risers.
- Stairlifts are remarkably easy to get around and live with, so don’t worry that a lift will inconvenience others that live in the home.
- Buy lifts from a qualified seller that offers full installation, service, and customer support.
The Centers for Disease Control estimate that nearly three million seniors are seen in hospitals and Emergency rooms each year for fall-related injury; around 20% of all falls cause serious injury, with hip fractures and head injury being the most common. Do not risk a debilitating fall in your home; talk to the professionals at Pacific Mobility about stairlifts and accessibility.
President, Husband, Father, Grandfather Graduate of UC Davis- Bio Sci Major- Go Aggies! Jeff has extensive experience in all of Pacific Mobility’s products and services, and specializes in accessibility products as well as stairlifts, ceiling lifts and custom wheel chairs. His hobbies include spending time with family, gardening, mountain biking, exercising and off road motorcycle riding.
24 years as Owner/President of Pacific Mobility Center – selling, installing, and servicing stairlifts, porch lifts, ceiling lifts, pool lifts, handicap ramping, specialty wheelchairs, scooters, power wheel chairs, and other power mobility devices
Certified Environmental Access Consultant since 2008
Licensed General Contractor since 1998
Certified Aging in Place Specialist since 2016
Board Member for Home Access Professionals
Member of Association of Members of the Accessibility Equipment Industry (AEMA)
