According to the population estimates from the HKSAR Government, 1 in 4 persons in Hong Kong will age over 65 by 2029. The ageing population has led to an increasing demand for residential homes as well as care workers for the elderly people. Improving the work efficiency of residential homes and the quality of life of the elderly people have become an important agenda in the welfare sector.

For the elderly with limited mobility, their daily lives are very much dependent on the use of hoist. The operation of hoist, however, can be labour intensive. It reduces the likelihood of the elderly people to leave their beds every day and engage in other social activities. The physical health of some of the elderly people would deteriorate due to the lack of activity. For instances, pressure sores would develop due to poor blood circulation resulting from constant pressure applied to the skin over a period of time; or weakening of muscle strength may result as they do not move and exercise for too long.

To improve the mobility of the bedridden elderly people and reduce the manpower requirement in residential homes, The Hong Kong Council of Social Service has built a professional team comprising university professors, representatives of nonprofit organizations providing elderly services, physiotherapists etc. to develop ComfyLift, a transformable bed-wheelchair. The ComfyLift, with 180° lie-flat seat back and footrest, can be operated flexibly by a remote controller and manually to facilitate simple, easy and comfortable bed transfer. The ComfyLift’s seat back, base height and armrest are all adjustable to ensure comfort and safety for people of all physique.

ComfyLift is still in an experimental stage and will be continually improved in the future, in a hope to become a good helper for the care takers and a good partner for the bedridden elderly people.