It allows her to use the toilet regularly after lunch and “accidents” have been noticeably decreased – a real success story. One of my students, Angelica, uses the Support Station as an adaptive toileting aid. So that’s why we look at toileting as an opportunity and not an interruption.Īdditionally, with the Support Station, we are seeing improved continence. This regular practice carries over into improvements in walking or sitting. By practicing toilet transfers with the Support Station our students no longer remain in their wheelchairs all day and they grow stronger. With the Support Station we are seeing increased functional participation for students who are large and with limited weight bearing. I even do it with students that are tube-fed. With the Support Station, they can get in and out of their wheelchairs easily. Many have cerebral palsy or other diagnoses where they are in a wheelchair and have spasticity or fluctuating muscle tone.
I use the Support Station for any student age 10 or older who has limited to almost no weight bearing. The support strap is useful in safely securing the child while their lower extremities and clothing adjustments are managed. There is also the option of handholds allowing the child to assist in the transfer. The shape of the trunk board allows comfortable placement of the student’s arms. And the swivel is helpful once a child is leaning against it, it assists in the transfer to a toilet, depending how you have positioned the Support Station in the bathroom. The trunk board can be angled for different weight bearing abilities. The Support Station is adaptable: It adjusts to accommodate different student heights.
That’s why the Support Station is revolutionary. Getting the students to hold on while leaning up against this table was very challenging. So I provide hygiene care for my students by leaning them forward on a padded table. It is demeaning to the children, especially the older ones, having them lie on a changing table like a baby. I never place our students in a horizontal position on a changing table for hygiene care. And for those students using the Support Station, I will work with them once a day for their toileting routine. The product that makes this possible is the Rifton Support Station.įor each of the more than twenty students on my caseload I incorporate a toileting objective on their IEP. As an Occupational Therapist I view toileting as a functional life skill, not as an interruption to the day.
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