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A PROACTIVE APPROACH TO WHEELCHAIR SAFETY
Easily Stop Falls Caused By Unsecured Manual Wheel Locks
FROM OUR CUSTOMERS
— MD, PT
Ormond Beach, FL
I purchased a Tracer SX5 wheelchair with Safer Locks for my mom from you last year. This product has saved her from multiple fall events! As a physical therapist, I can endorse this product without hesitation. Thank you!!
THE SAFER LOCKS STORY:
A SMALL TOWN DOCTOR ON A MISSION TO PREVENT WHEELCHAIR FALLS
Physician Grady Dugas, the inventor of the automatic wheelchair locking system, saw a crying need for a better wheel lock while treating residents in nursing homes. "Some residents fell repeatedly, often injuring themselves seriously while attempting to get into or out of their wheelchairs. They did not consistently remember to engage the wheelchairs' manual locks. As a result, the wheelchairs would roll away from them as they attempted to stand up or sit down. Often these injuries changed the quality of the rest of residents' lives," said Dr. Dugas.
To help these people, the wheelchair locks had to be automatic.
Dr. Dugas and his wife Annie Jo
Dr. Dugas made it his mission to solve the problem. After experimenting with various designs, Dr. Dugas was awarded patent # 5,203,433 for his automatic wheelchair wheel lock system.
Later, Dr. Dugas joined forces with Bill Hoge, President of United Plastic Molders, Inc in Jackson, Mississippi. With the help of Bill Hoge and the skilled craftsmen of UPM, they developed a lighter and more maintenance-free wheelchair wheel lock design that utilized advanced DuPont polymers. The new design was patented in 1999 and Safer Automatic Wheelchair Wheel Locks, or Safer Locks, was formed.
Today, the team of dedicated professionals at UPM and Safer Locks continues to fulfill Dr. Dugas' mission to "help prevent wheelchair-related falls and improve the quality of life for all people who use a wheelchair".
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