
Drinking aid
Our client is a lady with MS living in a care home – and has relatively little arm movement so cannot bring a cup up high enough to take a drink without help. Remap were approached to see if we could help her take a drink whenever she wanted to.
There are a few straw holders on the market but our client has relatively little upper body and head movement in order to move towards a straw, and the solution needed to move towards her.
The solution

Drinking aid in use
The starting point for the project was a commercially available flexi-arm desk clamp typically used for holding tablet computers, with the tablet computer clamp removed to leave a handy adjustable platform on which to mount a drinking tube.
The drinking tube is a standard type used by cyclists and runners for taking in fluid from a hydration pack, and has a push on silicone “bite valve”.
The tube is attached using clips comprising two spring “terry clips” covered in heat-shrink tube and linked together with screws – making it easy to remove the tube for cleaning. A machined stainless-steel weight holds the tube into the glass or cup.
Changes have been made to the desk clamp to allow the flexi-arm to rotate freely – and a white plastic rod with a washable foam handle allows the tube to be moved to the mouth when wishing to take a drink.
We supplied a special hydration pack cleaning brush to help the staff clean the drinking tube, provided full cleaning instructions, and ensured these were noted in the client’s care plan too.

Silicone “bite valve”

The adjusting rod attachment

Adjusting rod

Fine adjustment of the tube holder

HydraPak cleaning brush to remove any residue in the tube
The benefit
Our client can take a drink whenever she wishes without needing to call for help
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- Solution: