The team noted all of the problems observed in our initial research and grouped them into four categories. The team later added root causes and constraints to further define our problem.
Problem Areas Identified:
Use:
- People don’t use brakes (rollator)
- People don’t like walking close to walker
- Stand lifts take a lot of shoulder strength
- Sometimes takes two people to roll someone over to change Depends, etc.
- People don’t lock wheelchairs/rollators before getting up/sitting down
- Walkers with all pegs difficult to use
- Walker is not portable and prevents other actions once user is seated
- Gait belt design can be dangerous
Ease of Motion:
- Walkers too light weight
- Tennis balls better than none (walker)
- Walkers with wheels are better than pegs
Independence:
- Devices are there to help people move on their own, but some people rely on them too much
- Patients furniture walk – want to be independent, but devices can be clunky
- Can’t stand without walker (mental crutch)
- Parallel Bars require a lot of body strength
- Must pay close attention to vitals when moving (sitting up after laying down for long time)
- Patients lose balance when standing
Stability:
- Use pillow case on slide board to help them get out of bed
- Rollators less safe
- Walker not portable with wheelchair
- Rollators hard to stop downhill
Use and Ease of Motion:
- One-handed hemi-walker for stroke patients
- Quad cane for more stability
- Platform walkers better than hemi-walkers – stability on both sides
Use and Independence:
- Some people scoot with feet in wheelchairs
Use, Ease of Motion, Stability, Independence:
- Patients have anxiety when using products
- Certain products can’t be used due to legal issues