I had a great discussion with a customer yesterday who had purchased Full Arm Tubes for his mother in an extra small size. According to our chart guidelines, the size had been chosen correctly however what wasn’t taken into consideration was that the lady has a contracture that keeps her right arm bent at a 90 degree angle. Nursing staff advised him that in order to get his mother’s arm tube on, they had to attempt to straighten the arm which was proving painful for her. The lady has a skin issue on the inside ‘crook’ of her arm (antecubital) and another more serious issue on her elbow.

We looked at a few options for the gentleman to review with the staff at the long term care facility however the one that seemed to make the most sense was to get her an Arm Bow Tube with a zipper and to reassess her size, perhaps going up one size to a small. The zipper will serve to assist staff with donning and doffing the tube and remove the necessity to change the position of her arm. The Arm Bow Tube covers a bit less of her arm than the Full Arm Tube but it does cover the affected areas.

This discussion highlights two important issues: One (and the reason I absolutely love the HipSaver/DermaSaver people) is that they understand that each client is an individual and if the client needs a custom job to solve the problem then that’s what the plant will provide. Second is that there is always merit in giving us a call to discuss individual issues including sizing, zippers or product choice. The sizing charts are merely a guide and issues such as contractures and edema need to be considered.