By far the best “functional” gait belt I have used for my disabled ...
By far the best “functional” gait belt I have used for my disabled elderly mother.  It’s broad width, easily accessible slots for your hands and the relative ease of wrapping and adjusting the belt around the trunk of an individual makes this product unique and much more functional than several other transfer belts I have used for my mother.  However, the design and construction of the belt is terrible, which causes it to easily rip at the outer edge of the slots were you place your hands and could lead to the sudden and catastrophic failure of this device and result in the falling of a disabled individual.<br /><br />I actually have bought two of these belts on two different occasions.  The first belt lasted about three months before the first major rip, which made further use of the belt too risky because of my fear the belt would completely tear and result in my mother falling suddenly.  Note my mother weighs only 128 pounds.  However, because I really liked the “functionality” of the belt, I ordered a second one and hoped the failure of the first belt was due to a fluke production issue.  However, the second belt miserably failed again in the same way and within the second week of its use.  On closer inspection, I found the belt to be oddly constructed from multiple sections not initially appreciated and stitched together with only a single line of thread, which is not apparent until two pieces rip apart.  Furthermore, the fabric itself tears much more easily than expected.  Both of these design and construction issues can cause sudden and unexpected failure of this belt and lead to the sudden fall of a disabled individual, especially if they are much heavier than my mother.<br /><br />I suggest the manufacturer of this belt to re-design it with much stronger fabric and reinforced stitching and to switch to a single unit construction, which would negate the need to stitch smaller units together.<br /><br />I would judge this current product to be potentially dangerous because of its tendency to suddenly and unexpectantly fail without warning, thereby placing disabled patients at a risk for falling in spite of the assistance of a care giver.
Rating: 1 stars