“I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” is no laughing matter
Courtesy ResQUp, Scottsdale LIVING WELL Magazine
“I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” has gone from an advertising line to an unfortunate punch line for some. But for those with limited mobility due to age or infirmity, it’s no laughing matter. If no injury is apparent, the fallen still have to suffer the indignity of calling for help to get off the ground.
Dr. Al Peraza, a practicing physical therapist, had heard the lament many times. This situation was frustrating to Peraza and his patients alike. The idea for the ResQUp evolved from the specific plight of one of Peraza’s geriatric patients. The patient knew he was at risk of falling and was aware he would not have the strength to get up to a seated position on his own. Also, he didn’t want his wife to hurt herself in attempting to assist him up. Further, his personal dignity would not allow him to rely on 911 services that would result in the police, ambulance, or fire truck responding to a non-traumatic fall.
Peraza searched catalogs and the internet, and consulted with several highly experienced clinicians, but found no useful or practical tools that met his patients’ needs for getting up from the floor after a fall. With necessity being the mother of invention, the doctor developed ResQUp, an ergonomically integrated system comprised of four 1/2 inch horizontal levels that can be easily retrieved and placed into position while the patient is on the floor. It allows an individual to negotiate their way up to a chair height by ascending using their hands or elbows. Both methods require little or no assistance from a caregiver. After careful trial with Peraza’s patients, the product has proven to be safe and successful. ResQUp is now in use at therapy centers, and is also available for home use. As America’s population continues to age, ResQUp is the answer to the lament “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.” And that’s no joke.
Dr. Peraza oversees the occupational medicine program at the Yavapai Regional Medical Center in Arizona’s Prescott Valley and is a frequent speaker on the topic of safe patient handling and ergonomics to health care professionals. For more information, please visit www.resqup.com.
