Useful Equipment for Elder Alzheimer's Patient

The list below is much longer than I would have imagined ten years ago.  When I became a caregiver, I had only the slightest awareness of each of these time-saving, safety-oriented products.  Now, they are invaluable to our everyday life.  I purchased or borrowed each item to meet a specific need at the time it arose.   The links connect to representative examples:

• Kind Reminder - my own invention;  recorder that plays a loved one's comforting message at the press of a large white button  (www.kindreminder.com);  helps keep someone calm and reassured
• Wheelchair - needed after a fall compressed two vertebrae; used now to traverse long distances (http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/drive-medical-lightweight-transport-wheelchair-with-swing-away-footrest-19-inch-silver-vein/ID=prod6041818-product)
• Walker - used briefly when rehabbing from ten-day hospitalization with pneumonia;  helped regain strength which enabled return to walking unassisted  (http://www.parentgiving.com/shop/heavy-duty-deluxe-2-button-folding-walker-1073/p/)
• Bed rail - needed to prevent walking without assistance day or night (http://www.parentgiving.com/shop/adjustable-width-full-bed-rails-chrome-1566/p/)
• Baby monitor - allows remote oversight, during naps and at night; 1000 foot range makes it possible to move around the house and yard, while listening in  (http://www.vtechphones.com/products/detail/1704)
• Baby gate - used to block off upstairs hallway, leading from bedroom to stairs;  installed at chest height during naps and at night;  more of a reminder than an impenetrable barrier (http://www.target.com/p/evenflo-position-lock-tall-wood-gate/-/A-13979830#prodSlot=medium_1_6)
• Hospital chair - needed after hospitalization for pneumonia, when transfer from bed to chair was difficult; chair seat is high, there is a footrest, and the chair reclines for napping (http://www.swmedsource.com/medical_recliners.htm).  I purchased a used one on Craigslist for under $200.
• Gait Belt - a simple belt made of 3" wide webbing;  invaluable fall prevention;  companion holds onto belt that is around patient's waist;  invaluable to steady someone who is prone to trip or stumble (http://www.ebay.com/bhp/transfer-gait-belts)
• Emergency Evacuation Chair - used to transport person up and down stairs, when there was a temporary health problem that prevented walking;  used by EMTs to bring disabled people down stairs in emergency situations;  this was our solution to the problem of having no bedroom on the first floor and resisting the cost of installing an elevator or stair glide  (http://www.ebay.com/bhp/evacuation-chair)
• Door alarm - needed to alert caregiver that person was wandering at night;  alarm sounds in caregiver's room (there is a choice of tone) when a door is opened;  very easy to install (http://www.parentgiving.com/shop/wireless-wander-alarm-1830/p/)
• Foam Wedge Pillow - this is placed under a conventional bed pillow to elevate someone who is having breathing difficulty;  it was needed after a bout with pneumonia (http://www.makemeheal.com/mmh/product.do?id=10574)
• Skirts with elastic waistbands - needed for easy dressing and un-dressing;  found  (http://www.blair.com/t/womens/dresses-skirts/skirts/pc/1361/c/1397/1399.uts)
• TV Listener - wireless earphones that allow someone to listen to a program while the tv's speakers are muted;  others can be in the same room without having to hear the program that's on  (http://www.activeforever.com/tv-listener-wireless-headphones)
• Bath Bench - used for safe transfer from outside to inside tub;  enables bathing with use of flexible shower hose (http://www.walmart.com/ip/Carex-Bath-Tub-Transfer-Bench-FGB15411/14668617)
• Flexible Shower Hose - substitute for conventional shower head;  hoses are six feet or longer with shower head attached;  enables easy bathing by a caregiver  (http://www.environmentalgreenproducts.com/store/hand-held-shower-hose-kit-pr-16330.html)
• Elevated Toilet Seat - toilet seat is mounted on a frame with four rubber-tipped legs;  sits above conventional toilet seat, adding height and "chair arms" to increase stability (http://www.allegromedical.com/bathroom-assists-c517/all-in-one-commode-shower-raised-bath-seat-p564540.html)
• Bed and Chair Alarms - these alarms sound when pressure is relieved on a pad placed on the bed or chair seat;  used for a short time, before we discovered bed rails and set up 24 hour caregiving (http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/drive-medical-pressure-sensitive-bed-alarm-11in-x-30in/ID=prod6041889-product) and (http://www.parentgiving.com/shop/alarm-sensor-chair-timed-1yr-mdt84-4349/p/)