Arthritis and osteoporosis patient Heather O’Brien is attaining new heights of independence- through a unique toilet.
Heather, from Inverurie, has had her conventional WC replaced- on recommendation from her occupational therapist- with a Clos-o-Mat Lima Lift height adjustable automatic “wash and dry’ toilet.
The Clos-o-Mat Lima Lift looks like- and can be used as- a conventional WC, but includes in-built douching and drying, simply triggered by pressure on the flush pads, eliminating the need for manual cleansing with toilet tissue. Uniquely, it is the only ‘wash and dry’ toilet that is fully height adjustable, enabling the seat to be dropped to as low as 430mm or as high as 730mm via a finger-tip controlled infra-red remote.
“When it first arrived, I thought ‘what the heck do I do with this?’. Now I think it’s fantastic, brilliant!” says Heather.
“Before my osteoporosis, I was only 4ft 8ins(1.4m), now I am 4ft 3ins (1.27m). I was really struggling to go to the bathroom. Because the Lima Lift can be easily lowered by finger-tip control it means I can easily get on and off the toilet without help, setting it at a perfect height for me.
“And with my arthritis, I struggle to grasp toilet paper: the washing and drying facilities mean I know I am properly clean, again without having to get my partner to help me. He doesn’t need the cleaning benefits of the toilet, and was very dubious to start with, as was I, but he uses them now too!”
The Clos-o-Mat Lima Lift is manufactured in the UK by Clos-o-Mat, and compliments the fixed height Palma Vita wash and dry toilet. Since Clos-o-Mats were first introduced into the UK 50 years ago, over 40,000 have been installed in domestics, public and commercial environments across the country, many of which are still in daily use 30 years after first being fitted.
Details of ‘out of home’ locations are available at www.clos-o-mat.com/changingplaces (fully searchable by type of venue, area etc) and www.openbritain.net/useful-info/toilets.