My initial reaction to coming up with a therapeutic tool for occupational therapy intervention was very exciting. I have recently become interested in adaptive equipment and technology, and I was looking forward to getting to make my own device. However, my first thought when I found out I would be making a piece of equipment out of an empty ketchup bottle was, "What in the world am I supposed to do with this?!". It took a lot of brainstorming and trial and error, but I came up with the perfect piece of adaptive equipment for my client, Maurice, who is a retired 83-year-old dairy farmer.
Introducing, The Helping Handle!
I used an empty ketchup bottle, felt, duct tape, pebbles, and velcro strips to make this device. I cut a screen out of the front of the bottle, where the label would normally go. I added pebbles to give more weight to the handle and sealed it off with hot glue and a piece of felt. This tool features a window so that my client can scoop or pull objects from a table or floor and bring them closer to him. He is also able to turn light switches off and on as he pleases, and he is able to more independently feed himself with the velcro strips I attached on the side of the bottle, where his adapted spoon and fork would go.
For someone with Parkinson's disease (PD), like Maurice, I thought this tool could be helpful in a variety of ways. I chose to make the tool with contrasting colors because Maurice has cataracts in both eyes, which diminishes his ability to see properly. I wanted to make the colors alternate enough so that he could differentiate objects within the handle, but not so much that a neon color would shock his visual system. I also added weight to the handle because people with PD usually have some sort of tremor. I thought that adding weight would be beneficial for improving his fine motor coordination with certain activities of daily living (ADLs), such as eating.
Once I came up with the design of this tool, it was not that difficult to make. The only real challenge that I faced while making this was keeping the pebbles inside of the handle. I had to hot glue the pebbles inside to make sure they would not come out. I gave it a test "shake" to see if they would stay. A few of the pebbles came flying out of the tool, So I had to reinforce the pebbles again, and hot glue the edges of the felt so the pebbles would not come out.
I also designed this tool to allow for more independence with choices and decision-making for my client. He stated that he still likes to make choices about the food he eats and the clothing he wears, and I wanted to be able to give him some of that independence back by helping him pick clothes from his closet, and bring his shoes closer to him so he does not fatigue himself by stooping down to pick them up. This tool will provide increased independence for Maurice so that he does not have to rely on his wife as much, and will allow for more freedom in eating, dressing, and doing things around the house. I have included a number of pictures you can view below:
Maurice can hang up his clothes, or pick out his outfit for the day
I have adapted a fork and a spoon using velcro strips so that he can independently feed himself.
Using the scooping mechanism, Maurice is able to bring objects closer to him so that he does not fatigue himself by getting up and walking to them, or bending down to pick them up.
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