Mobility aids have come a long way, and continue to evolve with technology and innovation but one of the most exciting achievements in recent years has been the wide range availability of standing wheelchairs.

A standing wheelchair is a wheelchair that allows users to go from a sitting position to a standing position in their wheelchair. For those of us who don’t have mobility issues and constantly move from sitting to standing throughout the day, that may not sound like big news. But if you’re one of the many people with disabilities who spend most of their day sitting in their wheelchair the independence, physical and emotional benefits of being able to go from sitting to standing at the push of a button is worth celebrating.

The majority of stand up wheelchairs are power wheelchairs. A power wheelchair is a motorized wheelchair. The Karman Healthcare Stand Up Power Wheelchair goes from a seated power wheelchair to a standing power wheelchair at the push of a button. Additional safety belts ensure the user knows they are secure in their wheelchair and there are no concerns for the chair tipping. The Karman Stand Up Power Chair provides users the same maneuvering capabilities when the chair is in the seated and standing positions! If you’re in the kitchen and there is something on the shelf you need to reach, simply stand with the wheelchair and move within reach of the shelf. This particular model is very easy to operate whether standing or sitting.

What does the ability to stand mean for wheelchair users? Customers are quickest to talk about the emotional benefits the Stand Up Wheelchair provides them. You’ll often hear wheelchair users talk about how difficult it is to be “talked down to” – people standing have to look down towards a person in a wheelchair when having a conversation with them. Many standing wheelchair users rave about their ability to have conversations standing up, eye-to-eye, and be talked to “as an equal.”

There are numerous medical supply products built to aid caregiver’s with the transfer of patients, and caregivers have to be careful not to injure their patient or themselves (especially their back) when moving patients. Standing wheelchairs not only increase the mobility independence of the wheelchair user, but also decrease the times a patient needs to be transferred (the patient no longer needs help moving from a sitting to standing position).

On a physical level, there are numerous health benefits associated with standing. When a person is sitting in a wheelchair, the lungs and abdomen are compressed. Standing allows the lungs to fully contract, and stand wheelchair users often find their oxygen intake improves drastically over time and they cough less. Users of standing wheelchairs also report they’re able to enjoy eating because their ability to stand allows the digestive process to work more effectively and people are more comfortable during and after eating.

Pressure sores are one of the most common medical issues for people in wheelchairs. Being able to stand within the wheelchair frame helps prevent pressure sores and allows pressure ulcers to heal faster if they do occur. The body’s circulation drastically improves when wheelchair users are able to move easily between sitting and standing with standing wheelchairs.

As with the advent of any new technology, stand up wheelchairs can cost tens of thousands of dollars. As an already established world leader of mobility aids, Karman has been able to provide the public with the high quality Stand Up Power Wheelchair at an affordable price far below other standing wheelchair manufacturers.

For those who desire an even less expensive option, Karman also has a manual wheelchair with a battery-powered stand up operation – Karman Healthcare Stand Up Wheelchair. This wheelchair offers a change from seated to standing position in the wheelchair at the push of a button, but the remainder of the wheelchair remains manually powered.

The physical and emotional benefits of standing wheelchairs are more than what can be covered here. Take the opportunity to learn more about stand up wheelchairs, and go to retail stores where you can physically sit in the standing wheelchairs and experience it yourself. From the incredible positive response we’ve received from our customers, we look forward to many others claiming the independent mobility of these amazing standing power wheelchairs.