Assistive Equipment for Beginners: Where to Start
Assistive Equipment: the few things that matter most, and the mistakes that catch people out early.
Aids that make daily activities possible or safer.
Key takeaways
- Walking stick height: handle at wrist-crease height with the arm hanging straight
- Ferrules: replace when worn; a worn tip is a slip hazard
- Most useful single change: Have equipment fitted and set up by a professional.
- Commonest mistake: Using inherited or second-hand aids without checking the fit.
- See a doctor if any of the signs under "When to speak to a doctor" below apply to you.
Why bother
Equipment fitted properly extends independence; fitted badly it causes falls.
Start here
Start with two. Add the rest once those have stopped taking effort.
- Have equipment fitted and set up by a professional
- Check walking aid tips regularly
Then add these
Next, once the first two have stopped feeling like effort.
- Ask for an occupational therapy assessment for the home
The numbers, in one place
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Walking stick height | handle at wrist-crease height with the arm hanging straight |
| Ferrules | replace when worn; a worn tip is a slip hazard |
| Funding | often through the local authority after an OT assessment |
| Suction grab rails | not load-bearing; never for full body weight |
Common early mistakes
- Using inherited or second-hand aids without checking the fit
- Suction rails as load-bearing supports
Where to go next
- Answers to the Common Questions on Assistive Equipment
- Assistive Equipment at a Glance
- Assistive Equipment — the reference entry
- Setting Rehabilitation Goals: Sorting the Evidence From the Noise
- Rehabilitation After a Heart Event: What Published Guidance Supports
When to speak to a doctor
See a GP after any fall, even without injury. Seek urgent help for a fall with head injury, particularly while taking anticoagulants, or for a limb you cannot weight-bear on.
Where this comes from
How this page was put together
Every figure, recommendation and warning above is taken from the guidance named in Where this comes from. Nothing on this page is inferred, summarised or generalised beyond what those bodies publish: where they give a number, it is their number, and where they are silent, so are we. Pages are rebuilt whenever the underlying record changes. Sign-off by a named clinician, where it has happened, is shown at the top of the page along with the date.
Medical disclaimer
This article is general information, not medical advice. It cannot account for your own history, medication or circumstances. Always speak to a GP, pharmacist or another qualified health professional before making changes that affect your treatment, and never delay seeking medical advice because of something you have read here. In an emergency, call 999.
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