Accessibility Archives

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on julio 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush. The ADA is civil rights legislation prohibiting discrimination and guaranteeing people with disabilities the same opportunities as everyone else. The guidelines help ensure that anyone with a disability can enjoy the same employment opportunities, shop hassle-free, and freely participate in any state or local government programs and services. Essentially, the ADA is an equal opportunity law put in place for people with disabilities.

If you are opening a new business that caters to the public and has over 15 employees, you will need to follow ADA guidelines when designing your floor plan. It is against the law to ignore these guidelines. The ADA website has a list of the exact measurements and the standards, when installing accessible equipment. To help you get your business ADA compliant, we have compiled a helpful checklist to get you started.

ADA Checklist (Not to be Confused with Your ADA Compliant Booklet)

How Large is your Entrance?

Ensure your doorways are wide enough that wheelchairs or other mobility devices can enter comfortably. Also, make sure that there are access doors in place.

Are Your Aisles Obstacle Free?

Ask yourself if it will be challenging for anyone with a mobility device to navigate the aisles or reach the shelves? Is it easy for them to get around? Will they feel embarrassed trying to maneuver around tables or chairs scattered around corridors or hallways?

Are your Bathrooms Easily Accessible?

Even if you only have one stall, make sure the stall is wide enough that a mobility device can maneuver. Additionally, it is essential to have Barres d'appui and an outward swinging door. Grab bars can allow for a safe transfer from a mobility device to the toilet. Other modifications such as a wall-mounted or pedestal sink are ideal for wheelchair accessibility, giving full use of the sink.

Again, make sure to obtain a copy of the current ADA standards and review these in detail to see which ones apply to your business.

At Next Day Access, the accessibility experts can help you get your business ADA compliant. Whether you need wheelchair ramps or need to make sure your doorways are up to code, we can help you out. We also specialize in home modification products and have an assortment of mobility devices. Nous contacter today to schedule an in-home consultation.

Making a tiny bathroom accessible may seem impossible, but you can do it with some creativity. There are so many design options these days that you can easily create a tiny bathroom accessible while also being sleek and stylish. Here are a few tips to get you started with designing an accessible bathroom for a small space.

Change the Door

Most people with limited mobility may say that a barn style or sliding door is preferable over a swinging door. Maneuvering around a traditional swing-in or swing- outdoor can be difficult when turning a wheelchair. It is also a clever idea to widen the doorway. A wider opening is hassle-free and safer for anyone using a mobility device.

Remove the Tub and Shower Enclosure

Believe it or not, you can still shower in the bathroom if you tile the entire bathroom floor and set up proper drainage. Once you install an adjustable handheld shower, you can use large glass panels or huge shower curtains to contain the shower spray. Other options could be a walk-in tub or a bathtub modification kit. The kit allows you to turn any tub into a walk-in shower, creating a safer maneuver into the shower.

Install a Smaller Sink

A sink with a shallow basin at wheelchair height is ideal. When creating an accessible sink, allowing space for the wheelchair user to slide under is ideal. Think slim when choosing a sink. You can get one with counter space but leave the bottom area open. For a tiny bathroom, your sink needs to be small and as tucked away as possible.

At Next Day Access, our goal is to help provide accessibility or mobility solutions to individuals with limited mobility or caregivers to help create a safer and more comfortable lifestyle. Our experts can help you design an accessible bathroom, even if space is an issue. Contact us today to schedule a free in-home evaluation.

Every 65 seconds, someone in the United States develops Alzheimer’s Disease. Currently, 200,000 Americans under 65 have early on-set Alzheimer’s disease. Every year on septiembre 21, 2021, we commemorate World Alzheimer’s Day. We observe World Alzheimer’s day every year to bring awareness and educate people about this debilitating disease. By celebrating the day, it brings awareness to the disease, so we can highlight the issues that people with dementia are encountering. It is a chance for people to show how to overcome these issues while helping those with dementia.

What is Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s is a progressive brain disease that causes brain cells to degenerate and die. It is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking, and behavior that affects daily life. The cause of Alzheimer’s is unknown, and currently, there is no cure for it. It accounts for over 60% of dementia cases, and the numbers are steadily increasing.

Each year for World Alzheimer’s Day, there is a theme to help start discussions about the disease. This year the theme of the 2021 campaign is Know Dementia, Know Alzheimer’s, and it is all about the power of knowledge. The campaign goal is to shine a light on the warning signs of dementia and the importance of a timely diagnosis. In honor of this day, we have compiled a list of warning signs of dementia. If your loved one exhibits any of these signs, we urge you to quickly seek the attention of a medical professional to get a timely diagnosis. The signs are taken directly from the CDC website, and they are as follows:

What are the warning signs of Alzheimer’s Disease?

1. M emory loss that disrupts daily life: forgetting events, repeating yourself, or relying on more aids to help you remember (like sticky notes or reminders).

2. Challenges in planning or solving problems:  having trouble paying bills or cooking recipes you have used for years.

3. Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work, or at leisure: having problems cooking, driving places, using a cell phone, or shopping.

4. Confusion with time or place:  having trouble understanding an event that is happening later or losing track of dates.

5. Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relations: having more difficulty balancing or judging distance, tripping over things at home, or spilling or dropping things more often.

6. Recent problems with words in speaking or writing: having trouble following or joining a conversation or struggling to find a word you are looking for (saying “that thing on your wrist that tells time “Instead of “watch”).

7. Misplacing objects and losing the ability to retrace steps: placing car keys in the washer or dryer or not being able to retrace steps to find something.

8. Decreased or poor judgment: being a fraud victim, not managing money well, paying less attention to hygiene, or having trouble taking care of a pet.

9. Withdrawal from work or social activities: not wanting to go to church or other activities as you usually do, not being able to follow football games or keep up with what is happening.

10. Changes in mood and personality: getting easily upset in ordinary situations or being fearful or suspicious.

If these warning signs are present for you or your loved one, we strongly encourage you to seek medical attention. By being able to identify the warning signs and learning more about the disease, you or your loved ones can reach out for help and get the support you need.

A typical closet design can be frustrating if you have limited mobility. A custom closet layout will help your mornings be more convenient and help with your mental health. You will be able to get the most from your space and quickly get to those hard-to-reach items. Here are five steps to get you started on achieving more closet accessibility.

5 Closet Accessibility Ideas For Your Aging Loved Ones

1. Change Out the Doors

The very first step you will want to take is investing in sliding doors for your closet. A traditional swinging door can make it harder to navigate in and out of space. Also, make sure the knobs to push the sliding door open are low enough that you can reach them comfortably.

2. Hang Two Closet Rods

When using two closet rods (an upper and lower one), with the lower rod 30″ off the ground, the lower rod placement will be easier if you’re in a wheelchair; this can help reach items without causing strain. For the special occasion garments, they can go on the top rod. When you need your special occasion garments, you can use a pull-down closet rod, which will conveniently bring your clothes down to you.

3. For Dressers, Think Deep

Dressers are great for storage space, especially if the dressers are deep rather than narrow. If you’re in a wheelchair the size and placement of drawers matters. If the drawers are deep the user can store more with less hassle. It is recommended that dressers sit at a height of 33” off the ground to get the most ideal leverage.

4. Incorporate a Lazy Susan into your Closet

Yes, the same Lazy Susan one might see in a kitchen. A Lazy Susan is helpful because of its rotation. You will no longer have to reach deep into your closet to achieve your favorite bag. A Lazy Susan is perfect for accessories or even shoes.

5. Look into Slide Out Storage Features

When you have limited mobility, slide-out storage features should be a feature of your accessible closet design. Even a laundry hamper would work perfectly. As you need to dispose of dirty clothes, pull the hamper out, throw in the clothes and push the hamper back into its original storage area. Of course, this will also help when it is time to wash your clothes. Just unhook the hamper from its sliding rod, and you are ready to start washing.

At Next Day Access, our goal is to help anyone with limited mobility feel comfortable and safe at home. With one call, we can do an in-home evaluation to help you identify any area in your home where modifications can help you stay longer in your home. Nous contacter today for all your accessibility and mobility needs.

Getting back to a routine after an injury or illness is not an easy task. Once you are home from the hospital, you may notice that you might need some help adjusting to your everyday routine. Recently at Next Day Access, we had a man seek our services after falling from a tree.

Fortunately, the man will make a full recovery, but as he recovers, he cannot do the simple tasks he once did. His injuries affected his lower back and ribs, causing his core muscles to become weak. He came to Next Day Access and rented a lift chair since getting in and out of a chair was difficult with his temporary disability. Now, with the push of a button, the chair helps him stand. However, because he is expected to make a full recovery, it is unlikely that he will need the chair for a long time. Renting was the best solution for his needs.

Next Day Access also helped a Memphis family with short-term mobility adjustments with a lift-chair, listen to their story:

Opportunity to Try it Out

When renting a product, if it does not work for you, then you can return it. It is understandable and common for people to not like a product. That’s why renting can be a great solution for you. Having the opportunity to test out your mobility equipment means your needs will be better met. 

Your Injury is Temporary

Accessibility and mobility costs vary and sometimes the need for a solution can be temporary. As the story above illustrated, if an injury is temporary, then rental may be your best solution. Renting can be arranged for weekly, monthly or even for a long-term basis depending on your needs.

However, if your doctor believes the side effects of the injury could come and go you might want to consider a long-term solution. At Next Day Access, we can go over the benefits of either solution to help you determine whether you should rent or buy the accessibility and mobility solutions.

You are Traveling

You can rent a variety of our products. Say you fly in for a vacation at the beach for a family trip and need a wheelchair ramp. You can rent a ramp of any style and customization and have it installed by your local Next Day Access. Whatever your needs may be, Next Day Access has you covered.

We are here when you need us, whether it be for a short-term or long-term solution. Next-Day Access offers rentals for a variety of equipment and needs. Nous contacter today.

Gardening is a popular hobby that many people can enjoy. It is a healthy, safe, and comfortable physical and mental activity. However, as you get older, this hobby can become difficult because of limited mobility. Luckily though, there are many ways you can still enjoy gardening. Accessible gardening tools can help you avoid causing strain to your body.

Here are some suggestions on accessible tools and some tips on better gardening practices for limited mobility:

Invest in a Raised Bed or Plant in Containers

If you have trouble with bending down, then bring the garden up to a comfortable height. Raised garden beds bring the garden up to a comfortable height for the gardener. You will not have to bend and reach as much. Another good thing about raised beds is it doesn’t require much digging.

If you decide to maintain multiple raised beds, you might consider creating wide, level pathways between them. The paths could be composed of pea gravel, pavers, or brick. The route will help with weed control and provide a flat, secure surface.

Invest in a Rolling Work Seat

Consider investing in a rolling work seat. A rolling work seat can help you move around the yard and avoid pain and injury from kneeling, squatting, or bending. The wheels are created to move effectively over rough terrain, and the height gets you closer to your garden while still supporting your body.

Look into Tools with Long Handles

Edging the lawn is necessary when you are dealing with garden beds dug into the ground. Keeping the grass out of your garden can be challenging when bending over to use standard garden tools. Luckily, you can get edging sheers and pruners with an adjustable telescopic handle.

You will find that telescopic handles are an essential part of adaptive gardening tools for wheelchair users. It might take time to become precise with these tools, but once you do, your yard and garden will flourish. 

At Next Day Access, we love to help our customers continue to enjoy their outdoor hobbies. While we do not specialize in accessible gardening tools, we specialize in many other accessibility products and mobility equipment. Nous contacter today if you or your loved one needs any help making their home safe and more comfortable.

When you or your aging loved one decides to age in place, creating a safe and comfortable home is essential. As seniors age, their mobility decreases, and there is a higher risk of falling. The home must have home aging in place modifications to help prevent injuries. Here is a list of six simple yet effective home modifications.

Installing Grab Bars or Hand Rails

Installing Barres d'appui or railings in high-risk slippery areas, like the bathroom, can provide better support. Grab bars are typically installed near the shower or tub area and near the toilet. However, grab bars or railings can also be installed along hallways and staircases. These home modifications can give seniors more support maneuvering around the home.

Add Slip Resistant Mats to Tubs and Floors

In addition to grab bars, adding slip resistant mats or even slip resistant stickers, depending on mobility, to tubs and bathroom floors can help prevent falling. This can be the simplest yet also efficient way to prevent falling.

Quick Tub Conversions

Quick tub conversions turn your existing bathtub into a step-in shower while still maintaining a fully functional bathtub. Stepping in and out of the bathtub can be a slip hazard for older adults.

Threshold Ramps

A threshold ramp is a simple and safe way to help wheelchairs or other mobility devices to cross over rough surfaces. The slightly-inclined platforms makes it easy to cross over raised landings, doorways, or curbs.

Replace the Hardware on Door Handles and Cabinets

Replacing round doorknobs with lever-style handles can help people with arthritis or grip issues easily open doors. Likewise, swapping out round kitchen cabinet doorknobs with lever-style handles or bar handles makes accessing kitchen items a breeze. Small knobs, like those commonly found on kitchen cabinets, can be hard to grasp for people that struggle with dexterity.

Add More Light Fixtures

There are many ways to bring more light into the home. You can put nightlights in the hallway, tap-lights under cabinets, or lamps on tables. This will aid your loved ones in seeing where they are going, which can help prevent any trips or falls.

At Next Day Access, we offer solutions for home modifications. Our goal is to provide various solutions to help prepare a home for aging in place. Some of the additional services we provide include product installation services (for big or small jobs), in-home safety consultations, rental, and rent-to-own programs for non-custom products, as well as financing options. If you or a loved one is in need of our services or products, contact us today. 

Brian and Dave Clark, the founders of Accès le lendemain have been in the accessibility/mobility industry since 1997.  At that time, there were few companies of this type in existence. In the beginning, they installed wheelchair ramps provided for homes, churches, schools, and more with aluminum modular ramps. Thus, the history of Next Day Access began.

As time went on, the request for more accessibility products grew. The brothers found themselves installing grab bars, ADA toilets, patient ceiling lifts, vertical platform lifts, stairlifts, among several other mobility & products.

With over forty million Americans in the disabled community, they knew there was a need to get their services out there. Then, in 2010, they began to research ways to help more people in other communities.

In 2012, they developed a franchise business centered around supplying accessibility products as quickly as “the very next day.” That is when the official Accès le lendemain brand was born and in 2013, they launched their first franchise.

Today, we have over twenty-three locations and are growing quickly nationwide and internationally.  We saw the need and delivered.

Our Next Day Access Team

Along with making sure we are near our customers, we also have made sure that we have the best and most compassionate team available at each location. Our expertise is second to none, and our team members are passionate, driven, and knowledgeable.

We provide solutions to create a safer and more accessible space in all areas of the customer’s home and life. Many of the products that we offer can be installed very quickly with as little interruption to your daily activities as possible. We respect your time and privacy and will work around your schedule to make the process a pleasant experience.

Our installation team is highly skilled and will install products safely and efficiently. We understand that having to make your home accessible can be a sudden and unexpected expense.

Our experts can help you set up a payment plan or offer rental options. We do our best to determine the right plan for you. To ensure you have everything possible to keep you safe and comfortable in your home, we offer a free in-home evaluation.

The evaluation allows our accessibility experts to understand your needs and wants to make your home accessible. Whether it is showing you the proper placement of grab bars or measuring for a wheelchair ramp, we can help find what solution works best for you. Nous contacter today if you have any questions or to schedule your home evaluation.

Many office buildings today are designed with accessibility in mind, but there are plenty of older buildings that lack in this area. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 19% of people with a disability had a job in 2018. Having a disability doesn’t mean a person can’t work in some cases, so having the resources available to them is a necessity. The good news is virtually any office building can be enhanced with various accessibility products available today. Even a simple wheelchair ramp can make a huge difference in helping people get to and from work every day a little easier. These accessibility products are the most helpful to have in any office building.

Wheelchair Ramp

A modular commercial wheelchair ramp offers great value and benefits for people with disabilities. And for commercial property owners, the modular design means it has the flexibility to be moved or altered if the building has to change structurally or physically in any way. Each commercial wheelchair ramp can be customized to fit even the most unique buildings and can be adjusted as your needs change. Business owners can make their office space much more attractive by simply offering a wheelchair ramp for easy access.

Vertical Platform Lift

A vertical platform lift can be installed directly next to stairs or other areas and allows for people to easily walk on or even roll their wheelchair on. It acts similarly to an elevator where, with a push of a button, you can get from one floor to the next without having to lift a foot. They are very safe to operate and can handle heavy weight capacities. You can make your office building even more accessible to people with different types of disabilities by offering a vertical platform lift in it.

Elevator

Residential elevators are popular home accessibility products. However, they have now begun showing up in commercial buildings as well. They are typically smaller than a regular-sized elevator, but they can be constructed as large as a full-size elevator as well. It’s a great option for an office building that may not need a large elevator, but still want to offer an option for accessibility. They are attractive options and offer a great benefit for people in wheelchairs, people who ride mobility scooters or who simply have a difficult time walking without assistance.

At Next Day Access, we offer some of the top accessibility products to help your office building look great and satisfy the needs of anyone in your office who may be disabled. Even if you don’t have a person with a disability working in your office now, it’s important to be prepared in the event a great candidate, or even a client, come across your company. We would be happy to stop by your office space and provide a free assessment, so Nous contacter at any time to learn more about our products and solutions.

Stair lifts are a great product to consider installing in your home if you’re afraid of tripping and falling. Some of the biggest causes of falling in the home is a poor stair design, uneven stairs and small stair widths. Every year, millions of people admit to the emergency room due to injuries suffered from falling. Small home modifications for older people can go a long way in preventing these injuries and giving peace of mind. Not sure if a stair lift is right for your home? Here are three common questions that can help you decide.

How do I know if a stair lift will fit in my home?

There is a stair lift available to fit virtually every staircase. If you have a straight staircase with no turns or landings, then a straight stair lift is what you’ll need. Curved stair lifts are also available for any other type of staircase and can be customized to the layout of your home. Most stair lifts simply require a wall outlet to plug into, and many of them also come with a battery backup in the event of an emergency.

A trained and certified home accessibility professional can create the appropriate configuration to keep you safe while going up and down the stairs. You do not need to have any background knowledge on the different types of stair lifts available or if they’ll fit your needs. When you work with the right professional, they will make recommendations based on exactly what you need to maximize your mobility and increase safety in your home.

Can you install a stair lift for outdoor stairs?

Stair lifts are also designed for your outdoor living space. Most outdoor stair lifts are fully waterproof and designed to withstand harsh elements. Like indoor stair lifts, they are customized for straight stairs, curved stairs or even for stairs with multiple landings. Enjoy your outdoor living space more with an outdoor stair lift that requires minimal maintenance over time.

How sturdy is a stair lift?

A stair lift is typically secured directly to the staircase, not on the railing or the wall. You should not experience any type of unsteadiness with your stair lift, since your weight is applied to the staircase. The weight limit of stair lifts can vary, but many of them have a maximum weight capacity of 300 pounds with options for higher weight capacities if you often carry items up the stairs that could exceed this weight limit.

Next Day Access believes your home is where you should find ultimate comfort. The feeling of being uncomfortable walking up and down stairs can lead to a greater risk of accidents. If something as small as installing a stair lift could ease your worries, then give us a call today to schedule a free in-home safety assessment.