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Does anyone have any tips to help transfer someone into a car? My mom is a little heavyset (200lb+/-), can only stand with assistance and can BARELY move her feet. Currently my dad is only person who can get her in & out of car and even he is really beginning to struggle. We do have a manual Hoyer lift with a bent bar(not straight like some I've seen) I've wondered if I could get her in & out with it but not sure there's enough space in a small SUV (honda) Also if I were to use it of course I can't take it with us so I couldn't get her out at a store or dr office. I'd love to take her places as all she does is sit at home most days of the month. Ideally I'd like a way without the lift so that I can take her shopping or to visit with people but if lift is only option, at least I could take her for a drive to look at the leaves as they change colors :) To help describe her movements & mental capacity: dr best assessment is early onset Alz, although she also seems Parkinson's-like. She can barely control right leg if she picks it up it tends to cross over left foot. She can move left foot but it's like it's glued to ground or weighs 1,000lb at times or like her brain can't make it move. Also her balance isn't great, we have to hold her when she does stand, or she'll fall back and/or to the right. I am strong enough to handle chair transfer inside but have difficult time finding proper procedure in the tight space getting into a car, not to mention watching to make sure she doesn't hit head on top sitting down. Thanks for any help and hope I described well enough

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Before purchasing the Milford Lift, I actually first tried using a Hoyer Lift to put my mother into the passenger side of my car but there was not enough clearance underneath and I didn't want to spend thousands of dollars to buy a new-used car just take my mother out once a or twice a week. If I had the clearance, I could've positioned her just right but she has little motor skills and couldn't assist me in trying to position her in the passenger seat while I was in the driver seat trying to "pull" her into the car and lower her into the passenger seat. And my Hoyer Lift is Hydraulic which was another deterrent. If I had the electric version that I could hold while inside the car and trying to position my mother into her seat, then I may have been able to make this work but Medicare won't pay for an electric Hoyer Lift and a used one runs about 1.5 to 2K on Craig's List and ebay, so I thought I might as well spend another few thousand to get the Milford Lift because I know this I can sell later one down the road and get a good chunk of my money back. Now my mother has no motor skills at all so even if I could get into the care with Hoyer Lift, I wouldn't be able to get her out of the car when we've reached our destination because I have no way of transporting the Hoyer Lift with us. I'm my mother's only caregiver and I have other living relatives to help me care for my her; if I had other family, then maybe I could make a cheaper version of transporting my mother work for me. This Milford Lift is expensive - but will sell on ebay so you can at least get some money back if you price if right. Or I just may sell my crappy VW wagon with the lift still installed and price it lower than a wheelchair van and at least get some money back on my crappy car! Another reason why I didn't want to buy or rent the wheelchair van is that my mother has lower back pain issues from degenerative disc disease and lumbar stenosis, so she needs to be reclined at least 30 degrees to take the pressure off her lower back and I don't have this option if I were strap her into wheelchair van set-up. She also kinds of slumps forward a little due to no core strength and her inability to remain upright while in her wheelchair was also concern to me. Her lower back issues are so bad now that I've been looking for a used special needs all-terrain type of stroller that reclines back to use in place of the wheelchair. She's petite and will fit into one of these strollers.
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accessiblevans-px.rtrk/index.php?utm_source=Net+Pistol+PPC&utm_medium=PPC&utm_campaign=Accessible+Vans+of+America

Depending on where you live, there may be rental handicap vans available. Check out this link as well as Google your own area. Yeah, it probably won't be cheap, but itt would sure open up mom's world.

I wish you luck.
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Thanks! I wondered if any lifts you could add to car you already own. My dad works at local hospital and was going to buy handicap van from them but they decided to keep it for now! I'm not sure that she can follow the instructions and has the motor skills for the slide board but that is something my dad could easily make so we may give that a try also. I really appreciate these suggestions. Has anyone ever used a hoyer lift to put someone in and out of standard size vehicle? Not sure if enough clearance for her body hanging from lift between seat and protecting head at top of vehicle?
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I'll mention this but I'm not sure if would work if your mother isn't able to put much weight on either leg and stand, as it might require that.

My father made 2 slide boards for her. We would wheel her out to the car, position her as close to the door as possible, as if the wheelchair were an extension of the car seat.

The left arm rest was removed. The slide board was positioned as close to her left hip as possible while she rolled to the right so the board could be slid underneath her.

Then she scooted over onto the slide board and into the car. Once she was in, she tipped to the left, and Dad removed the slide board.

It takes some practice though to know how far to move on the slide board without sitting on it entirely and preventing it from being removed.
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Check this link out: pridemobilityprideliftsandramps/milfordpersonlift.asp

In our home, my mother is a Hoyer Lift transfer due to permanent immobility. I purchased a Milford Lift last year to transfer her into my car. The cost for equipment plus installation cost me just under five thousand - but it was a hell of a lot cheaper than paying for a wheelchair van. And the installer wrote off the sales tax (a couple hundred dollars) after I provided a note to him from my mother's doctor that she is in need of this equipment for transportation. I take my mother out once or twice a week only. From the installation of the Milford Lift, there will be permanent damage to your car because the lift is drilled into the floor and it works by being wired to the car battery. I drive a crappy 2000 VW wagon so I didn't care if my car is damaged because I won't pay for a used wheelchair fan to only take my mother out once or twice a week; a good one, like a used Honda or Toyota wheelchair van runs about twenty thousand from what I've seen on Craig's List. And I won't get my money back on the van while the economy is still slugging along. Whenever Mom passes away, I can easily sell the Milford Lift on ebay. Good luck!
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