Community donations lift Lakeside Living residents

A new lifting device, funded by Edenhope’s Murray to Moyne team, is already improving outcomes at Lakeside Living care community.

The $5,300 ‘Elk lift’ inflates in stages, gently helping a person up from the floor.

The project was identified as a priority by team members, who wanted a quick and comfortable way to respond to resident falls.

“Even though we really try to minimise it as much as possible, it’s a reality that older people have falls,” clinical care manager Laurence de Luna said.

“There are so many factors that can cause people to fall, including declining mobility, medical conditions that bring dizziness, postural drop, blood pressure issues, or cognitive impairments.”

Laurence, dubbed the ‘falls champion’ by her peers, is responsible for assessing falls risk, prevention and response in Edenhope.

She was therefore delighted when the compact, portable Elk lift was delivered.

“We had training for this equipment two weeks ago and have already used it twice,” she said.

“We don’t want to strain our staff or cause them any injuries when they are assisting older persons, so we have always used a hover jack.

“This Elk lift is much more convenient and easier to use, which means it’s much nicer for the older person too.”

Funding came from community donations, raised in April when 12 cyclists took part in a gruelling Murray to Moyne bike ride.

It is wonderful to see these direct benefits from the team's efforts!