Perhaps the most common of accidents and hazards in the bathroom for someone with mobility impairment is in the process of accessing and exiting the shower or bathtub. This process is fraught with edges, water and unstable surfaces. Add in the difficulty a carer experiences when manually lifting and shifting another individual’s weight, and it’s easy to understand why this process can be so difficult.
Showerbuddy’s transfer trange for bathtubs is designed to completely eliminate this concern. Using our unique chair-base-bridge format, users and carers alike can enjoy a barrier-free transfer in and out of a bathtub style shower. Finally, bathing is comfortable and relaxing for mobility impaired individuals.
What makes the Showerbuddy such a good solution for mobility impaired people with a bathtub is that it takes care of the entire bathroom routine. The bath transfer process is now effortless, with the included bridge allowing the user to be slid over the edge of the bathtub and into the bathing area. The user remains seated the entire time they’re inside the bathroom, with the mounting onto the chair able to happen in the safety of a bedroom. Many users will be transferred directly from bed onto the chair, made even easier with the Showerbuddy’s flip-back arms.
The sturdy design and high degree of manoeuvrability is enabled through 360 rotating castor wheels. A family member or carer simply brings the user into the bathroom where they can conduct toilet use and be transferred into the bathtub for a shower.
Reduce hazards and injuries with no manual lifting
Removal of hazards during transfer into a bath is what Showerbuddy is known for. The occurrence of back sprain to carers is daily for carers, and we know how important these roles are in the care of mobility impaired individuals. The Showerbuddy’s bath models, known as the SB2 TubBuddy and SB2T TubBuddy Tilt, remove any manual lifting whilst inside the bathroom.
Through the design of the in-bathtub base, the chair and the transfer bridge, equipment is taking the full load of the individual’s weight, with each component firmly locked in place, ready to take the pressure of a mobility impaired person’s shifting weight.
There’s another important reason why we believe assistive technology needs to play a starring role in supporting mobility impaired people’s bathroom use – they enable privacy. The TubBuddy systems from Showerbuddy provide a level of support through included arm rests, cushioning, safety belts and optional neck rest, that many users may be able to be left to bathe for periods of time on their own (with a carer nearby in the event assistance is needed). It’s these moments of alone time in the shower that provide a true sense of independence and dignity. This is something we think everyone should have a right to, no matter their level of mobility impairment.
To make a bath transfer system that’s fit for purpose to as many households as possible, we’ve designed our products to be adaptable. That means users and their OTs can select a shorter or longer transfer bridge to accommodate a particular set of dimensions in their bathroom. We can even custom order a non-standard bridge length to bring TubBuddy into your bathroom comfortably.
The SB2T TubBuddy Tilt represents a major step forward in carer convenience when it comes to bathtub transfers. For users where the manual lifting of legs to clear the bath edge is either painful or impractical, our TubBuddy Tilt is the perfect answer. These bath transfer systems tilt back 30 degrees safely and securely, allowing clearance of a user’s legs across the edge of the bath.
This tilting functionality has another purpose – some users need the weight distribution taken off due a particular condition that causes pain. The tilt back function of TubBuddy Tilt will redistribute weight back into the core and upper body, allowing for even more comfortable bathing.
To make bath transfers even more safe our TubBuddy solutions come with safety belts to keep the body in place. Our chairs also come with caster wheels that roll easily across bathroom and house flooring – locking firmly in place for stability when it comes time to use the toilet or transfer across the bridge into the bathtub.
Our bathtub transfer solutions bring much more to users than comfortable bathing. All our products come equipped with a complete commode system, including an easy to remove pail and lid to protect contents, ideal for users who need to use the commode away from the bathroom such as bedside in the middle of the night.
Showerbuddy’s products can be adjusted to suit the user. This includes a seat height that can be lowered or raised, and footrests that can be adjusted, swung away or removed entirely.
But with the TubBuddy transfer range, the bath base and rolling chair base are both height adjustable as well. This is a crucial feature as bathtubs are not uniform in their floor height and depth as compared to the bathroom floor. By allowing a fine tuning of the height of each base, users and their carers can ensure the transfer is perfectly stable and flat.
Our users enjoy a high degree of comfort from their TubBuddy systems. We bring this to them through a carefully designed comfort cushion that’s easy to remove and clean, along with a range of accessories to adapt the chair to individual preferences. Our armrests are highly comfortable as well, offering a relaxed seated position that enables users to focus on the enjoyment of bathroom use.
With its durable-non-rusting frame made from hardened, powder-coated aluminium, the Showerbuddy range is going to last the distance. Many of our users have the same unit from childhood, through teen years and into adulthood. We believe so strongly in the quality of our chair frames that we guarantee them with a lifetime warranty against rust or corrosion.
Our hardware and fittings used for assembly are all hewn from stainless steel, brass and medical grade plastic, ready to stand up to the rigours of daily use in a bathroom environment.
Our bath transfer solutions are easy to set up, with 90% of the system shipped assembled out of the box. Users will be up and running within an hour of set up and installation.
We ensure that our manufacturing and packaging is sustainable, shipping our products in recyclable materials. At the end of the product’s life, the system can be recycled through your distributor or Showerbuddy directly.
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