• E-mail
• Print
• RSS

Benefits of Ambulation-Part III

LTC Nursing Assistant Trainer, September 29, 2005

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to LTC Nursing Assistant Trainer!

Some residents are able to ambulate by themselves, some need assistance from CNAs, and some require assistive devices. The following notes will guide CNAs as they assist residents who use gait belts, canes, and walkers. CNAs should always make the resident's safety their number one priority.

At the beginning of each procedure, ensure you have taken all of the "Before ambulation" steps, which LTC Nursing Assistant Trainer covered two weeks ago in the first of its three-part ambulation series.

Ambulation with a gait belt

1. Secure the gait belt around resident's waist, snugly but not tightly.
2. Ease the resident into a standing position by grasping the gait belt on both sides while standing in front of the resident.
3. Let the resident stand in place for a few moments while you firmly hold the back of the belt.
4. Open the privacy curtain.
5. Stand to the resident's weaker side and slightly behind him or her.
6. Ambulate the resident the prescribed distance, and do not rush him or her.
7. Observe the resident for any change in condition.
8. Return the resident to his or her room.

A therapist will likely provide the resident with instructions on how to walk with a cane or walker. You are responsible for seeing that the resident continues to use the device properly.

Ambulation with a walker or a cane

1. Open the privacy curtain.
2. Help the resident to stand.
3. Stand to the resident's weaker side and slightly behind him or her.
4. If the resident uses a walker, make sure he or she stands inside the frame of the walker and has his or her hands securely on either side of the walker. The resident should lean on the hands for balance and support, and lift the walker and move it forward no more than six inches at a time.
5. If the resident uses a cane, make sure he or she moves the cane forward no more than 12 inches at a time. He or she should move the weaker leg forward, to be even with the cane, and then move the stronger leg forward, slightly ahead of the cane, and repeat these steps each time.
6. Ambulate resident the prescribed distance, and do not rush him or her.
7. Observe the resident for any change in condition.
8. Return the resident to his or her room.

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to LTC Nursing Assistant Trainer!

• E-mail to a Colleague
• Print
• RSS
• Archive