Mobility Aids

After your ankle surgery, mobility aids will be a key part in regaining your mobility, which in general will be

severely limited. Adding to this you will need to be non-weight bearing for a period of weeks after your surgery. This can be a very trying time with your limited mobility impacting upon all aspects of your daily life. Having a network of friends and family in place can aid you in your general daily tasks and our page on preparing for ankle surgery has lots of helpful tips and information. The most effective way though of getting things done is to have the correct mobility aids that will improve your quality of life by giving you back your mobility but doing this in a safe way that will not aggravate your injury and will help in a speedy recovery. So the question now is what are mobility aids and what are the types that can best help me?

What are Mobility Aids?

Mobility aids are devices designed to assist walking or otherwise improve the mobility of people with a mobility impairment. Some of the more common aids that people use to help in there recovery are.
Crutches. Many patients use crutches after surgery to keep their affected foot off the ground. The most common type of crutches, are made of wood or aluminum and fit under the arms. Adjustment is important. You should be able to fit two fingers under your arm when standing with crutches. With your arms hanging down, the crutch handle should be at the crease of your wrist.
Walkers. Sometimes called a zimmer frame come in a variety of styles either 4 post, slide or wheel, these help you move about in a more stable way and are preferred by people who may not have the strength or confidence to use crutches. Walkers also make a stable platform to help in and out of bed and on and off the toilet.
Wheel Chair. Allowing you to roll about in a seated position using your own power, though some models come in powered versions. Accessories such as a leg lift can be add to keep your leg elevated.
Walking Stick. Most people will find a walking stick most useful in the later part of there recovery when your surgeon has said you can start to put some pressure on your foot. Walking sticks come in a range of styles from solid wood to metal sticks with shock absorbers.
Knee Walker. Also known as a Knee Scooter is another option, this device allows you to place your knee on the scooter and roll around with your leg safely elevated.

Mobility Aids Hire or Buy?

As you can see from the items above there are a lot of things that can help in your recovery and this is by no means a complete list. The most costly item on our list which you will need straight away is a wheelchair, wheelchair hire is for most people the most attractive option, this can sometimes be done from your hospital.
Buying all of these items is one option that you might want to consider but the cheaper option by far is to hire the mobility aids for the period that you need them. As your mobility improves with your recovery you will find you will no longer need to rely on a wheelchair and you will move onto using a walker, crutches or a knee scooter followed by a walking stick.
In an effort to make it easier for you to find stores that both sell and hire the mobility aids listed here we have compiled a list of companies. By either clicking on the map below or selecting your state from the side menu you will find a list of companies who can help.
This is by no means an extensive list but it aims to give you some places to start. Another good place to look are the larger chemists in your area with many of them hiring out mobility aids. Alternatively if you are a hire company or have had a good experience with a hire company that deal in mobility aids feel free to contact us and we will add them to our list.

If you would like to know more about how can I getting around with my mobility aids and be non weight bearing please click the link.