Make sure all 4 tips or wheels of your walker are touching the ground before taking a step. Step forward with your weak leg first. If you had surgery on both legs, start with the leg that feels weaker. Then step forward with your other leg, placing it in front of the weaker leg.
Your elbows should bend at a comfortable angle of about 15 degrees. Check your wrist height. Stand inside the walker and relax your arms at your sides. The top of the walker grip should line up with the crease on the inside of your wrist.
Using your walker to go downstairs
Hold the walker with one hand and the handrail with the other. Support your weight on your good leg. Step down with the bad (injured) leg. Support your weight evenly between the handrail and the walker.
Make sure all 4 tips or wheels of your walker are touching the ground. Lean slightly forward and use your arms to help you stand up. Do not pull on or tilt the walker to help you stand up. Use the chair armrests or handrails if they are available.
If using a gait belt, walk slightly behind and to the side of the patient, while holding onto the gait belt with both hands. If the patient is weaker on one side, Home Health Aides/Personal Care Aides should stand on the weaker side to provide extra support.
If a gait pattern is not specified, general gait patterns should be utilized. Walker: Resident should move the walker ahead first, followed by the weaker leg, then the stronger one.
A walker will help provide stability and support and allow you to maintain weight-bearing restrictions while walking. After illness or injury that requires an extended period of bed rest and recuperation, you may have weakness in one or both legs. Your balance can also be affected after a period of bed rest.
Also, as you walk, you will move the cane at the same time as your weaker leg. Think of it this way: Hold the cane on your strong side and move it along with your weak side. For example, if you have an injured right knee, hold the cane with your left hand.
Standing to the side of the patient provides assistance without blocking the patient.
You need a system to decrease the weight on that left side while you're walking around. Holding the cane in the opposite side, does just that. When you step with your right leg, your left leg has to do all the work to support the body's weight.
Your elbow should be slightly bent when you hold your cane. Hold the cane in the hand opposite the side that needs support. For example, if your right leg is injured, hold the cane in your left hand.
Walker Baskets– A walker basket is a popular choice because it provides the most carrying space of any walker attachment. Baskets are great for carrying your purse or groceries and often come with a plastic tray insert to help carry drinks.
The most important thing to remember when using a rollator is not to have anyone push you while seated. The rollator is a walking aid only and should not be used as a transportation device.