Medical supplies aren’t just about safety and healing. The right at-home medical equipment is also about the independence and empowerment of our Tampa residents and patients.
You and your loved ones deserve to live freely, independently, comfortably and safely in your Tampa Bay home, despite your medical conditions. Aids for Daily Living (ADL in medical contexts) empower patients to achieve daily tasks without delay or frustration.
And Tampa’s own Helios Medical Equipment offers in-person, brick-and-mortar store (on North Dale Mabry in Carrollwood) offers ADL supplies that can improve your life in ways you didn’t now where possible.
The Little Challenges of Day-to-Day Life with a Medical Condition
Aids for Daily living are the tools that you can use to achieve Activities for Daily Living. Aids for Daily Living medical equipment comprise ingenious solutions for daily tasks that able-bodied people wouldn’t think twice about.
Medical conditions can create challenges in all kinds of everyday tasks, including:
- Answering and dialing the phone
- Reaching items on the floor, high shelves or nearby surfaces
- Holding silverware
- Keeping food from spilling
- Organizing medication
- Getting dressed
- Bathing
- Using the toilet
While they might seem unimportant, these small tasks lie at the very heart of independent, fulfilling lifestyles.
Why Activities for Daily Living are So Important
When faced with a medical challenge, we often think in terms of the largest losses first: athletic limitations, independent travels, physical feats. We hear our prognosis and think, “Now I’ll never run a marathon.” We’re less likely to think, “Now I’ll have a hard time tying my shoes.”
But the most insidious problems caused by injuries and medical conditions are the ones that limit our moment-to-moment lives. We realize how much of our sense of independence is wrapped up in those private moments performing tasks that we used to be able to handle on our own.
To suddenly need help in those moments can be tremendously psychologically upsetting.
Aids for Daily Living Can Extend Independence Through Medical Limitations
Fortunately, the medical industry has created an entire category of ADL equipment that allows for those of us with physical limitations to achieve these daily tasks on our own. Instead of needing an extra person to be with us for every little moment, we simply need a few items in our own home that can help us get the job done.
Types of ADL Available in Tampa
Today’s ADL includes:
- Thick-handled silverware for easier gripping
- Plates and bowls with elevated sides
- Bottle and jar openers
- Safe food prep accessories
- Long-handled sponges and scrubbers for bathing and washing hair
- Sock aids
- Zipper pulls
- Dressing aid kits
- Reachers/grabbers
- Electronic pill organizers
- Talking alarm clocks
- Activity aprons
- Typing aids
- Book holders
- Thick pen and pencil holders for writing
The ADL Bottom Line
It’s natural to feel frustrated when an injury or medical condition affects your life. But be aware that there are aids and medical supplies out there that can allow you to keep living independently and productively.
Before you resign yourself to your limitations, visit Helios to see the at-home ADL options that can significantly improve your quality of life.
Deckard & Company