DarkSeaglass Asked December 2019
Car recommendations - best car for safe(r) wheelchair transfer?
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My mom (83, ALZ) weighs about 215 and cannot stand and pivot very well. They have her as a two-person assist for transfers at the SNF. I have trouble transferring her from the wheelchair to my car (Equinox). Currently, I'm using a gait belt to lift and pivot her onto the seat, and she's often dead weight.
Fortunately, my lease is up soon and I'm looking for recommendations for a car/SUV that's got a wide door opening, or is otherwise friendly to mobility-impaired passengers. Would also welcome any advice on the best way to transfer her.
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Take a large contractor garbage bag and cut the bottom so the bag is like a large tube, open at both ends.
Place the bag on the seat.
When you get moms butt on the seat just pick up her legs and swing the legs in to the car.
The bag will allow her to slide easily, it will bunch up a bit but it should not be uncomfortable.
To get her out of the car, swing the legs back out and her butt will turn easily as she will just slide around.
When you go to help her up be careful as the bag will make it a bit slicker and you don't want her sliding out so have a good grip on the gait belt.
As far as other vehicles
Most of the SUV will pretty much have the same width doors in the front. And the back doors are more narrow.
A van type will have a sliding door but the seats are usually back a bit further so it might be more difficult to get her in.
The other option would be to look for a vehicle that has been converted to accept a wheelchair and you can then leave her in the wheelchair and latch it down. The question on that is...how long are you going to be able to take her out....it might be less expensive to get a medical transport when you need to take her out and cut out other trips when it becomes unsafe for you or for her to transfer her to your vehicle.
Another option is to get "slide boards". My father made two, one longer than the other. They're a little bit more awkward and uncomfortable, but they can help.
The person in the passenger seat tips to the left; the board is inserted beneath her/him and she/he slides on the board, scooching over toward the door. Enough of the board is left open to place it on the wheelchair, which is placed right next to the car door, with generally the left arm of the wheelchair removed. So the board spans the distance and creates a bridge between the wheelchair and the car door.
The person slides or scooches over the board until part of his/her bottom is on the wheelchair, then tips to the right side while the board is removed.
This isn't the easiest method, but it's a possible option.
Grandma1954 makes good points about future needs. I had to hire transport for a cataract surgery followup, and after calling many private contractors hired an ambulance nonEMS transport van. It was wheelchair enabled, but I didn't need that.
Cost was $40 each way, plus $2.25/mile. Expensive, yes? Safe, yes. The driver was very polite, friendly, cordial and concerned for safety. And I didn't even have to bother asking for insurance verification; as an EMS contractor, I knew it would have liability insurance.
The only problem occurred on the second trip, after my second cataract was removed. Someone goofed up and the van wasn't sent. It was clear when I called to find out when it was coming that an error had been made. Still, I would probably use them again but call again that morning to verify confirmation.
Fortunately, by then I didn't need glasses and just drove myself.
Hopefully the wheelchair has a side that swings up. Makes transferring easier. There are transfer boards.
My question is, why do u need to take Mom out. I cut out some of Moms doctors and let the LTC doctor car for her. She had Dementia. At 89 she no longer needed a urologist. She cancer free for over 5 yrs. Other dr was just for follow ups for things that never got worse. Since her Thyroid numbers looked good for a while, all that was needed was a test to be done every 3 months which the NH could do. A dentist came to the facility as did an eye dr and foot doctor.
Although I had difficulty transferring my 150 lb mother (I can't imagine carrying the majority of the weight for someone 50 lbs heavier) it was doable until she suddenly couldn't bear her weight at all in the middle of a transfer and I almost dumped her on the snowy sidewalk. I realized then that car rides were no longer safe and looked for a local accessible transport provider - no more transfers, no more worry. Should have done it sooner.
Its floor and seats are at the right height for them to plop down in easily. I help them pivot their legs when needed. (Car has 8.7" ground clearance).
It can also carry most push-type wheelchairs in the hatch - especially with rear seats folded down - and I'm considering getting a "car cane" to give them an additional hand-grip.
That said ... some communities and/or public transit agencies may offer wheelchair van services. No transfer required at all. Drivers just roll, lock, and go.
I used them extensively to help a good friend who could not be transferred at all without a Hoyer lift. Main drawback was a shortage of dispatchers. Reserving rides could be time-consuming - but it was FAR less expensive than private transport companies, and the drivers were top-notch.
It's not safe to transfer her like this by myself--for her or for me, but the alternative is basically a prison sentence of having nothing to look forward to. I say this about our situation--for *my* mom. I am not in any way, shape or form passing judgement on anyone else and what they're choosing for their loved one.
I hire wheelchair vans for transport for all medical appointments, and they're expensive but reliable, and so very much safer. However you can't hire them to go out shopping, etc. I hired one for Thanksgiving, confirmed twice ahead of time, and then they never showed up.
Someone asked for how much longer--I don't know. She's been in the facility since she fell and broke her femur in April, but she spends most days entirely in bed, watching tv, doesn't want to shower, doesn't want to go down to bingo, basically doesn't want to get out of bed--except for when we take her out on weekends. That is her only bit of life for the week, and she is cognitively declining very quickly now. I have to take her out, until I can't.
Thank you all for your responses.
Are there any taxi firms in your community that have wheel chair accessible cabs? There are where I live and are a great service between medical transport and managing on your own.
Also have you looked at a "Car Cane"?
Ffrom AARP
The simplest solution I saw was a mini van with the passenger seats removed allowing the wheelchair to roll up a ramp and into that spot - parked beside the curb the ramp was not at all steep. Of course the modifications would need to meet safety standards and there must have been some way to secure the chair in place.
The best vehicle for transferring that I've owned is my Honda Element. Doors open really wide, and it's a straight across transfer for my brother's MIL. However, she's six feet tall, so the Element works well for her.
My own mother is about 5'2" and 200 pounds, so I don't think I could get her in the Element anymore. She did very well with my Honda CR-V.
Most likely her skills are going to decline, what shall she be like in 5 years? Given that, instead of investing in a traditional vehicle, a van with a wheel chair lift may save you a lot f money in the lung run not to mention saving your own back.
At this point you need a wheel chair accessible van with a motorized lift. Or hire a Taxi that is wheel chair accessible, or use medical transport services.
I just do a car transfer. It's not as bad as I thought. Not really that much different from doing a bed to wheelchair transfer. I do wish they made cars with ultra wide opening doors. A gullwing would be perfect with all that headroom too. But a Tesla or a Lamborghini would be a little too expensive. Maybe a Delorean.