Student invents wheelchair-lift for hospital use
By Brittany Muller
IV Leader Staff, May 3, 2007
When looking around IVCC, it is true to claim that
there are a variety of students with different goals, pasts, ambitions and
futures. Whether we recognize it or not, each and every person sitting next to
us in class or walking behind us in the hall or pulling in next to us in the
parking lot, is striving towards some sort of goal.
Perhaps that is what college is all about: to figure out a
goal, learn from others, and somehow make that specific goal a reality.
Struggling and battling illiteracy for most of his life, Randall J. Graham, an
IVCC student, found the courage and determination to improve his reading ability
with the help of the Adult Learning Center.
After becoming a born again Christian in 2002, Graham started
volunteering at local hospitals. With the support and knowledge of others,
Graham developed a plan for a wheelchair-lift.
Sue McElya, director of volunteer services at Community
Hospital of Ottawa, assisted Graham in his design for the wheelchair-lift.
Discussing the need for the wheelchair lift, McElya explains, “What I shared
with [Graham] was our need for an electric wheelchair with the controls (joy
stick) on the back handles, so our volunteer escorts could push an ever-larger
group of patients around the building.”
This specific piece of equipment is to help employees of
nursing homes and hospitals to lift patients out of wheelchairs. On the topic of
the purpose and desire to invent the wheelchair-lift, Graham explains, “I have a
back problem, and I suffer everyday. To have others not suffer because of my
invention would make me feel great.”
Graham has had a natural ability to build all his life.
Following the footsteps of his mother’s grandfather, Graham has always been an
inventor. After being a welder for fifteen years, Graham decided to attend IVCC
to create new opportunities with his newfound ability to read and write.
The Graham Wheelchair-lift is in the process of becoming a
reality. With his patent finally approved, Graham plans to market his chair to
specific hospitals and nursing homes. The patent lies in the arms that lift 1150
pounds. There is a vest that the patient would wear while sitting in the chair
and it would help stand them to their feet. The chair itself lifts 550 pounds.
“It’s not uncommon to have [patients] 400 - 500 lbs. [and
more],” says volunteer director Sue McElya, “and we do all the patient transfer
during the day.”
Based on operations, Graham explains, “The chair lifts a
person from a sitting position to a standing position without the assistance of
a staff member. Many patients in nursing homes lose the capacity to stand, so
the upper body vest gives support for lifting. There is a retractable footpad in
the back of the wheelchair that allows a staff member to ride along with the
patient.”
With many other ideas in my mind, Graham is in the process of
making other patents. He hopes to promote the Graham Wheelchair-lift and end the
difficulty of moving patients out of wheelchairs. His inventions are meant to
make the lives of others easier, smoother and less demanding.
Through the struggles of his own life, Graham easily sees
problems that others may not recognize, thus his desire to make improvements.