I have read that weight bearing exercise will help with bone strength, but what if the patient just keeps falling every few days and breaking bones? Who will step in and say the patient is better to stay in wheelchair, unless they are in physical therapy or getting in and out of bed or on the toilet? (Patient has osteoporosis and history of fractures.)
I went to med supply store and purchased a pretty blue transporter chair that weighed only 14 lbs. It was easy for us to lift and handle, fit in truck of car, looked good, put a nice cushion on the seat and Mother was quite happy with it. Could have just done that without involving doctor and having to wait for delivery of the ugly chair. You do not need permission to get what you need.
If the primary care giver is a nursing home, then I'd say they call the shots. When mom had PT at the nursing home for 2 months, they made it clear she was NEVER to walk unassisted. In fact, for the first six weeks? They wouldn't even let me handle her. The LAST thing they want is for a patient to fall.
Littleton, that's what we did for mom - a light transport chair. The home nursing people insisted on a wheelchair. After we got it, I sent it back. Big, bulky. Just.No.
I had to move my cousin to a Secure Memory Unit this week. She wheeled out to the parking lot twice trying to find her car to leave the regular Assisted Living facility. (She had no car there.) I was surprised she was able to get the front door open and get outside. Someone must have opened it for her.
Anyway, her hand is healing, but it's kind of bent and I don't know she will ever have enough strength in it to use a walker. Her arms are also so weak. Her legs are stiff, but she was walking a few steps at a time last week near her bed and in the bathroom with an aid by her side.
I'm going to discuss it with the staff at the Memory Unit and see what they think about the wheelchair issue. This is the first week in awhile that she hasn't fallen. Her balance is so poor as well. I just think it's a set up for disaster by removing the wheelchair.