Transfers: Sliding board vs. Hoyer

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We went straight to hoyer, but right til the last 4 days, Chris did some standing transfers. During the day from some chairs he could stand with assistance from me. He could usually do a standing transfer out of bed. From later afternoon on it was hoyer for everything in the last months as he would be tired.
The calculation really is hard to compare as it depends on which muscles are going in which order and at which speed.
There have been some super replies here.
We had a transfer belt but Chris hated it.
 
Transfer board did not work for us as you need arm strength and core strength. It would have been rather unsafe. Hoyer and urinal were very helpful and hoyer sure adds to the routine. PALS and CALS are going through a LOT and lose even more. We simply did it because it was necessary and were grateful that these things exist... and we would have gladly done other things had there been fun alternatives - like getting better and not needing all the DME.
 
I should have added that we used the transfer belt in conjunction with a walker. We would put the walker in front of the lift chair/wheelchair/bed/ commode, put his hands up on the walker, use the transfer belt to help him stand. He had just enough arm strength to shift some of his weight onto the walker then with our help do a 90 degree pivot to his next seat. As Tillie said, what aids work for any individual depends on the combination of their strengths and weaknesses.
 
My PT at the rehabilitation facility trained my family on a Hoyer lift this morning. She told them the legs went in to go under most hospital beds, then widen them when you came out. She stated wider was more stable, but demonstrated it wouldn't tip when narrowed and she turned it. We have tried the transfer boards at home, but it was difficult. The facility recommended we not use them, but use the lift...
 
Yes, turning radius is the real issue. We had to do some turns in steps, kind of like doing a K turn with a car.
 
Oh boy is this bringing back memories. Full disclosure, I dumped Matt on the floor in a hotel once because I didn't have those legs on the Hoyer locked out and they came together while I was turning him. You do need to be careful!!!

We used the sliding board for quite awhile, since Matt's legs went before his arms and back. The day I refused to do the sliding board transfer anymore he decided to show me that I was wrong, and tried to launch himself from the chair to the bed. He wound up on the floor and we both laughed our a$$es off.

It helps to have a towel under the PALS on the board. You then pull on the towel to slide them across the board. Clearly, you always want to slide downhill, not up, which is another time when the elevator on the chair becomes very important. He needs a fair amount of core strength and arm strength to use the slide board.
 
Reporting an update on transfer board. As my legs and arms are getting pretty weak (especially at the end of the day) transfers are getting harder. For the past couple of weeks we’ve been using a sliding board to move between my wheelchair and recliner. It requires assistance but is much easier and feels so much safer. It also preserves energy for the pivot transfers between wheelchair and toilet that I still need to do in the evening. i do still have some arm strength and some core strength. I like it. A bit of advice: be sure to slide downhill!
 
i used a sit to stand lift for about a year and a half before I went to a full lift. I was a lot easier lift to use.
 
This is an old post but can I jump in and ask something? I'm 4'11 and 103 lbs. My husband is 6'1 and a big/broad strong man. Currently he simply picks me up for transfers. We figured we will never need a hoyer or anything like that. Are we wrong? It is a lot harder on my female PCA when she takes my weight and I'm not sure if she could all out carry me like he does (luckily she hasn't needed to yet). So Im wondering if we'll need one after all.
 
My sister never had one she was close to your size. Her husband was smaller and older than yours. everyone involved ( except me) could do the transfer. Is there ever going to be a time when you might be left with someone who can’t transfer? That happened once to us. No show aide and the other one left for another assignment. We thought it would be ok as I could dial 911 or push the wheelchair in an emergency as we expected the aide momentarily
 
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