SITUATION:

My mother is making the decision to move into an assisted living housing unit. She does fairly well with taking care of herself, but thre are some things which she feels she should be able to do beter. Examples are bathing, doing fasteners on her clothes and some cooking tasks. We know she has arthritis and is not as strong as she used to be. Do you have any suggestions?

SOLUTION:

I do have some suggestions for you and your mother. First, check with the assisted living housing unit she is considering and see if they have an occupational therapist available at least for consultations. Since I do not know your mother's complete situation and diagnosis, I can only make general suggestions for her.

First, there are many types of adaptive equipment which can make little tasks of self care easier. For bathing, there are long-handled sponges and brushes to reach your back or other parts of your body that are difficult to reach. There are also brushes which suction cup to the bottom of the tub or shower on which you can then scrub your feet. For dressing there are a variety of simple tools to help button or zip. There are also choices of bras which have been designed to be easier to fasten. Lastly, for cooking, built-up ("fat") handled tools would be much easier on your mother's finger joints. There are also simple equipment which help to hold bowls for you while you pour cake mix into a pan, for example, or hold bowls still while you stir. All types of reachers are out there for reaching cans on a high shelf or towels out of a closet, for examples.

Again, contact the assisted living housing which your mother is considering and see if they have an occupational therapist working with them. She will know how to find out about adaptive equipment to make your mother's life easier and more independent.