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Yumeya Furniture - Wood Grain Metal Senior Living Furniture Manufacturer & Assisted Living Chairs Factory
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Yumeya Furniture - Wood Grain Metal Senior Living Furniture Manufacturer & Assisted Living Chairs Factory
Humans lose muscle and bone strength as time passes, making the elderly more vulnerable to injury and pain. To ensure the well-being and comfort of the elderly, specialized high-back chairs must be used in nursing homes. Utilizing high-back chairs at assisted facilities can yield positive results and user feedback.
Finding the perfect high-back chair that suits multiple users in a nursing home can become complex. What should be the ideal height, width, material, upholstery, armrests, depth, and many other aspects of a high-back chair? The chair must combine comfort and durability while considering the budget of a low-end, mid-range, or high-end assisted living facility.
This guide will explain multiple aspects of high-back chairs and provide a step-by-step method for finding the ideal product for the elderly in a nursing home. Let's begin!
Understanding the need for high-back chairs in a nursing home is an excellent starting point for creating a more comfortable and supportive environment for elderly residents. Considering their well-being and facilities' budget constraints, we can end up selecting the perfect product.
Considering that the elderly need good posture while sitting, high-back chairs provide excellent back support to keep the spine straight. Due to the high back, residents can support their head and neck with the chair, improving stability. With the right chair, getting in and out of the chair becomes a gentle process.
High-back chairs are durable owing to their stable design features. Generally, high-back chairs are made with materials such as aluminum or hardwood that last longer.
Depending on the type of high-back chair, they are either stackable or nonstackable. However, storing all high-back chairs is easy due to their symmetrical design. They require less space, allowing more real estate for the elderly to move.
High-back chairs have a premium look with more privacy aspect. Their inherent armrest and cushioning design make them luxurious aesthetically. However, with the right combination of color and upholstery, the room can be made homey and inviting.
There are many names associated with high-back chairs. Manufacturers call them fireside, wingback, riser recliner, or high-seat chairs. Each name indicates different types of high-back chairs that are suitable for various rooms in a nursing home. However, we must understand the subtle design changes between each type and their best usage scenario.
Chairs with a heightened back and seat are called high-seat chairs. The design promotes support and makes it easier for the elderly with mobilization issues to get in and out of the chair. The material can vary, but generally, they have removable cushioning and premium craftsmanship for long-term performance.
Usage in Nursing Home: A metal-frame high-seat chair is great for a nursing home's dining area and activity room.
These chairs have a unique wing-like structure resembling bird or butterfly wings. Although the chair looks aesthetically pleasing, it has an essential health feature for the elderly. The design of the wingback chair offers two key benefits: the high back protects the head from drafts, and the supportive design helps maintain posture and prevents drowsiness. The wings in the wingback chair extend to the armrests for maximum coverage.
Usage in Nursing Home: Lounges and common areas with wingback chairs are great for aesthetics, support, and napping.
Dining chairs with high backs look luxurious but serve an essential purpose. The high back lets the user move the chair in and out quickly, making it easier to grip and pull it out. These chairs typically do not feature an armrest and have lower cushioning. However, in a nursing home, having a dining chair with a high back heightened cushioning, and armrests is ideal.
Usage in Nursing Home: As the name suggests, these high-back chairs with cushioning and armrests are good for dining rooms.
Personnel struggling to get in and out of their chairs can opt for the rise recliner. These chairs have a high back and multiple motors to assist certain motions. The angle of reclination is up to the user. However, when rising, some users can utilize the built-in motors to help them rise into a standing position. Similarly, they also have a footrest that is also motor-assisted. They are primarily placed in lounges to provide maximum comfort.
Usage in Nursing Home: Rise recliners are meant for a high-end nursing facility where residents need assistance getting in and out of chairs.
Its subcategory of lounge chairs utilizes high-end materials for maximum durability. Users may use these chairs for extended periods. Generally, they provide maximum comfort by incorporating metal, fabric, wood, foam, and padding. The high back helps maintain the ideal straight posture for the elderly and offers maximum support to the spine.
Usage in Nursing Home: High-back chairs are great for lounges and sunrooms, mainly due to their premium aesthetics.
We must ensure we serve the elderly with the utmost comfort while considering aesthetics that enhance any living space. High-back chairs are ideal that combine convenience, comfort, and visual pleasure. While there are many high-back chairs, as discussed earlier, specific dimensions, shapes, and materials are suitable for the elderly.
In this section, we will summarize key points from the comprehensive research done by Blackler et al., 2018. The study titled “Seating In Aged Care: Physical Fit, Independence And Comfort” collects data using authentic statistic techniques from high, mid-range, and low-end facilities. The authors come to a logical conclusion through multiple interviews with the residents and dimensioning of the chairs. Here, we will mention those aspects in an easy-to-understand manner:
Determining the perfect height for the elderly is essential as it directly impacts the sit-to-stand (STS) effort. The seat height is generally the distance between the top of the cushion and the floor. However, the cushion can compress under a person's load, thus reducing the seat height.
The effort required to start the motion and put in the effort from the muscles to get out of a chair largely depends on the seat height. Lowering the height can lead to more effort from the pelvis region, and making it too high can reduce stability and may lead to venous thrombosis (VT). Finding the perfect balance is essential. According to Christenson (1990), a facility catering to a large group of elders with varying anthropometric measurements should feature seats ranging from 380 to 457 mm.
The seat depth is the distance from the front of the seat to the backrest. This dimension is essential as it determines whether the thigh will rest adequately. If the seat height is high, it will obstruct blood flow to the legs. If the width is large, it will cause a similar effect, as the user will have to hop on the seat to lay their spine straight to the backrest.
The ideal seat depth that works for most users is 440mm. For width, considering the anthropometric measurements of human hips, the chair needs to have a space around a clenched fist on both sides. Considering a large set of data, the 95th percentile results in 409mm.
According to Holden and Fernie (1989), Armrests should be 730 mm from the floor in front and 250 mm from the seat in the back, 120 mm wide, and 120 mm from the front border of the seat. These dimensions ensure that the effort required for STS is minimal and puts less stress on bodies vulnerable to muscle aches.
A lower armrest height of 250 mm near the chair's high back compared to the front allows the elderly to sit comfortably without stressing their shoulders.
The slope from the front of the seat to the back is called the angle of the seat. In most cases, having an angle on a seat for the Elderly is not recommended. It can make getting out of the chair difficult and affect their independence.
The back height is vital for an assisted living facility. The typical height for a high-back chair is 1040mm, reaching up to 1447mm. Lounge chairs tend to have a higher back as they are more aesthetically appealing and luxurious. However, considering medical aspects, a 1040mm back height is ideal for proper spinal support.
Similarly, the pressure on the intervertebral discs increases as the back recline angles. It can cause severe back problems for the elderly. Therefore, a backward incline of 13 to 15 degrees is best for the user's comfort and well-being.
Alongside engineering a high-back chair that provides comfort and well-being to the elderly, it needs durability. Durability and longevity in chairs come with a choice of premium-grade material. The design needs to hold strength, occupy less space, be easy to handle, and be lightweight and long-lasting.
Engineers utilize materials such as aluminum and wood to achieve such purposes. Some use steel as the frame material, but this can increase the overall weight of the chair. Using aluminum with a wood finish in a retirement home is ideal for maximum durability and longevity.
All the fabric, padding, webbing, and sometimes springs combine to form upholstery material. A typical high-back chair for the elderly should have firm padding and a fabric that is easily washable.
Now that we know what aspects of the chair to look for. We can dive into the easy-to-follow steps for any buyer looking for the perfect high-back chair for the Elderly. Let's begin!
1. Begin by analyzing the elderly users' anthropometric measurements.
2. Average the user's requirements and select the value closest to the 95th percentile.
3. Look for a high-back chair with dimensions within the ranges we stated in the previous section.
4. Select a reputable manufacturer with an on-ground facility and significant employee numbers.
5. Browse through the products and ensure that the high-back chair you select for the elderly has aesthetics that blend in with the surroundings. Consider the different types of high-back chairs suitable for various rooms and settings.
6. Before purchasing, consider the seat height, depth/width, armrests, seat angle, back height, recline, and material design.
7. Look for certification of strength and stability by the American National Standard by the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association (BIFMA) or another European standard.
8. Certifications such as EN 16139:2013/AC:2013 Level 2 are ideal for ensuring proper seating for the elderly. Level 2 is suitable for personnel with mobility issues.
9. If your facility requires stacking multiple high-back chairs one over another, then look for stackability under chair specifications.
10. Look for brand warranty as it reflects the authenticity of manufacturers' confidence in their products.
Selecting the ideal high-back chair for the elderly requires careful evaluation of requirements and product analysis before purchasing. Start by understanding the different types of chairs and finding the suitable types for your application. Then, if it is difficult to predict future facility users, well-researched dimensions for the chair should be used. Use our step-by-step guidelines to select the perfect chair for the elderly.
By carefully evaluating a high-back chair, you can provide comfort, independence, and overall well-being for the elderly. Check out comfortable lounge chairs and dining chairs for the elderly by Yumeya Furniture. They provide durable and luxurious products with budget-friendly high-end chairs to premium options.
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In 1998, Mr. Gong, the founder of Yumeya, developed the first Metal Wood Grain Chair, opened a new era. After more than 20 years of development, Yumeya had became one of the world leading Metal Wood Grain Chair/Senior Living Furniture manufacturer.
