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By, Linda Haas
A local, Valrico inventor has won
first place at the INPEX, a trade show for inventors! After having
worked in home health care for 14 years, Kathleen Fike struggled
to get her charges in and out of the shower/bathtub, dealing not
only with the cumbersome weight of the patients, the awkward
stools and benches available, but also with the fears of the
elderly. Clients who are fearful of falling are even more
difficult to deal with that the ordinary.
Kathleen has worked with many of the
stools, benches, and other shower devices that are on the market.
She said to herself, “There has to be a better way!” Most devices
are designed either as a stool which gives no back support to
patients who have had strokes and are unstable to begin with or as
benches which stretch across the tub, making it nearly impossible
to shut the shower curtain or door, thereby, leaving the floor of
the bathroom a wet, slippery, dangerous place.
The Swivel Tub and Shower Chair is
designed so that it not only has a back, but arms for sturdier
support once the patient is in the bath. It swivels so that it is
easier to move a patient from a wheelchair, sit him/her down in
the chair, then swivel it back and lock it in place to keep both
the patient and the bathroom safer by allowing the curtain to
close fully and by making the patient FEEL safer, more secure.
After doing huge amounts of research, Kathleen discovered that
there is absolutely nothing similar on the market, so with the
help of her husband, an engineer, and the patent office, she
invented this Swivel Tub and Shower Chair. So light weight that
even the smallest woman can manipulate it in and out of the tub,
this chair finally answers a need for both the home health care
worker and also for the family of a loved one who has limited
mobility.
Congratulations, Kathleen Fike, on fulfilling a need long overdue!
Linda B. Haas, BS of Ed., MA (English), educator for 36 years, is
a graduate of Kent State University, breeder/exhibitor of Maltese
dogs, and currently teaches at Hillsborough Community College. |
