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I am taking a college class about medical device innovation. The device I am working on is the gait belt. If anyone is currently using or has used a gait belt in their caregiving and had any issues with their belt feel free to message me and or leave a comment about the issues you had. If anyone has any thoughts on how to improve a gait belt for home use I would also love the hear your ideas. I would also like to also request that people please list what material the belt was made out of. Any and all ideas are appreciated as they help me generate new ideas.

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I bought a gait belt to help with transfers and to steady mom when she could still take a few steps and it's a good thing they are cheap because I never found it to be helpful at all. The problem I ran into was that unless it was cinched so tight as to be uncomfortable and almost too snug to grasp it inevitably rode up. And as far as I can see transfer belts would have the same problem unless they have a loop that passes between the legs.
Want to know what did work? I made sure mom's pants were made of sturdy fabric and I gripped the waist band - decades ago my grandmother made use of my grandfather's belt- securely through the trouser loops - in the same way.
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It was a standard gait belt from amazon - some kind of man made fibres?
I've just checked and a similar belt only specifies sturdy webbing, not the actual fibres. It is definitely not cotton.
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I use a gait belt to transfer my mom and have the same problem Willie had, it rides up. Also, I find the metal clasp actually warps after a couple months and snags on her clothes. I'll have to try gripping her waistband on her pants instead, that's a great tip.
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Same problem with gait belts used at rehabs.    I've always thought it was a less than satisfactory option.
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Would any of you who experienced the gait belt riding up think that detachable clips that could attach to the belt loops on pants be effective in helping the issue?
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Also thank all of you who have taken the time to reply to my question!
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This is from my CHE 4245 class - Clinical Immersion
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