Norah, a resident in her early 90s at Abbeyfield Supported Sheltered Housing, Princes Risborough, was in the habit of going into town on her own to visit the library. Then she suffered a stroke that affected her balance and her confidence in getting around. Norah’s room is on the first floor of her home. To gain access to the outside world, or even to the communal dining area and day room on the ground floor, she has to cross the landing at the top of a flight of stairs to access the lift. Using a wheeled walking frame, and with impaired balance, she was increasingly worried that she may fall down the stairs. She began to spend more time alone in her room. An occupational therapist at Wycombe Hospital referred Norah to Remap, whose engineers were able to come up with a solution.

To stabilise the walker, a tubular runner was mounted on the wall opposite the top of the stairs, and two sprung ball-end shafts were fitted to the frame, one on either side. Norah simply feeds the end of the appropriate shaft into the runner and can cross the landing quickly and confidently in the knowledge that the walker is secured. She can now eat and socialise with fellow residents again, and has resumed her trips into town. Norah said: “This gadget makes it safe for me to walk across the top of the stairs and has made a world of difference. It’s 100% successful.”

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