Mealtime Partners Drinking Systems
For most individuals, dehydration is 100% preventable. And yet many people with disabilities suffer from some level of dehydration almost constantly. Due to the great importance of proper hydration, Mealtime Partners recommends that everyone be provided the means to drink at any time they wish.
There are several considerations for choosing a drinking system. Foremost is the user’s ability to move their head and/or upper body, and their ability to suck. If they have good suction, a drinking system can usually be mounted on the back of a wheelchair or a bed head which is out of the way and unobtrusive. Mealtime Partners provides three rear mounted drinking systems for users with these capabilities: the Drink-AideTM; and, two Hydration Backpack Drinking Systems. The Drink-AideTM comes with a (28 oz.) insulated bottle and the Hydration Backpack Drinking Systems have a (50 oz.) bladder to hold liquids. Both provide a drinking tube very near the user's mouth for easy access to liquids. One of the Hydration Backpack Drinking Systems comes with a drinking tube positioning conduit that will hold the drinking tube's position firmly, in any position. The delivery tubes for the Hydration Backpack Drinking Systems have a bite-valve on the end for easy access to a drink. The user simply bites the valve to open it and can then suck the liquid from the bladder. The Drink-AideTM tube is semi-rigid and contains no valve, thus no bite is required. However, the user must be able to pucker their lips around the tube to be able to drink from the Drink-AideTM.
Unfortunately, many people who are unable to pick up a drink with their hands, also have a limited ability to suck and require a short straw from which to drink (instead of a long drink tube). This reduces the mounting possibilities for a drinking system. The system must be in front of the user and near to their mouth. The Mealtime Partners Front Mounted Drinking System, is a drink holder that is positioned to hold a drink container (cup, bottle, etc.) close to the user's mouth. Thus, the straw can be as short as necessary to facilitate easy suction for the user.
Mealtime Partners also offers a special cup for individuals who are at a high risk of aspiration when they drink thin liquids. One-teaspoon (5 cc) of liquid is the maximum amount of liquid that is recommended per swallow for those with a high risk of aspiration. The Provale Cup dispenses liquids in the appropriate amount, thus greatly reducing the risk of aspiration for those individuals. However, the Provale Cup cannot be used with thickened liquids. The Thickened Liquids Cup is recommended for individuals who require a thickened liquids to reduce the risk of aspiration.
The Drink-Aide Drinking System
The Drink-AideTM system consists of a cup holder that mounts on the handle of a wheelchair and an insulated bottle that fits snuggly into the holder. The bottle has a flexible conduit attached which contains the drinking tube. The conduit will maintain any position into which it is formed. This allows the end of the drinking tube to be positioned near the lips of the user so that the user can drink any time they desire. The bottle holds 28 fluid ounces of liquid.
The Drink-AideTM cup holder can be attached to the handle or the frame of a wheelchair. Depending upon the position of the handles, the holder can be mounted inside or outside of the handles.
The insulated bottle mounts in the cup holder and the drinking tube is positioned using the flexible conduit.
Because the drinking tube is firm, the user must be able to close their lips in a pucker around the tube to create a vacuum for sucking. Additionally, they must have the strength/suction to suck liquids about 30 inches. The Drink-AideTM Drinking System is a excellent drinking system for individuals that can meet these functional requirements.
The Drink-AideTM Drinking System is suitable for individuals who can move their head freely to one side and who have good lip control.
Hydration Backpack Drinking Systems
There are two versions of the Hydration Backpack available, one with a drinking tube positioning conduit and one without. Both Hydration Backpacks are backpacks that contain a bladder that holds liquids. The shoulder straps are used to attach the Hydration Backpacks to the rear of the wheelchair. The bladders have a large 50 ounce capacity for maintaining hydration for longer periods of time without refilling than our other drinking systems, and the backpack lies flat against the back of a wheelchair to maintain a small footprint. Both versions have a soft drinking tube and a mouthpiece that keeps liquid from leaking from the tube. When the user bites the mouthpiece, it opens so that suction may be applied to get a drink. Because of the large bladder size, the hydration backpacks are suitable for individuals who are “on the go”.
The Hydration Backpack Drinking System
The Hydration Backpack Drinking System (without drinking tube positioning) is pictured below. The drinking tube can lie freely across the user's shoulder or can be clipped onto clothing to maintain the position near the user's mouth.
The Hydration Backpack System with Drinking Tube Positioning
The hydration backpack with drinking tube positioning was adapted by Mealtime Partners to make a larger volume of water (than a cup provides) available to individuals in wheelchairs, who are unable to access the drinking tube of a standard hydration backpack. To facilitate access to the drinking tube and valve for those who have limited range of head movement, the tube is contained within a flexible conduit. The conduit is clamped to one of the handles or to the frame of a wheelchair. (The clamp is included with this drinking system). The flexible conduit can be shaped so that the tube is positioned to meet the needs and desires of the user. Once the flexible tube conduit is shaped, it will hold it's positioned until it is adjusted. The drinking tube and bite valve are held in a position such that the user can easily place their mouth on the valve.
The hydration backpack with drinking tube positioning is suitable for individuals who have limited head movement and who have adequate oral control to bite and suck.
As shown above, the drinking tube attaches to the wheelchair handle or other bars on the chair.
The Hydration Backpack Drinking System with Drinking Tube Positioning is suitable for individuals who have limited head movement.
The Front Mounted Drinking System
The front mounted drinking system was developed by Mealtime Partners to provide access to fluids to our customers who use wheelchairs but who have a very limited range of head and trunk movement, and, who additionally have weak suction. The system consists of a heavy-duty gooseneck that has a clamp on one end and a cup holder on the other.
This drinking system clamps to the front tubes of a wheelchair frame. The heavy duty mounting gooseneck can be bent to position the cup holder within easy reach of the user’s mouth. Once bent, the shaft holds its position well.
The cup holder can accommodate a variety of cups and bottles. For example, it can accommodate insulated coffee mugs and other assorted cups and bottles. It can also accommodate a koozie to keep drinks cold (in the illustrations the cup holder has a purple koozie and green and yellow cup). A flexible mounting gooseneck allows custom positioning for each individual. The Front Mounted Drinking System has several mounting options: mounting goosenecks come in 6 inch, 12 inch, 18 inch, and 24 inch lengths, to accommodate different user heights and seating systems.
Because the cup is positioned in front of the user a short straw can be used with this system. This close proximity allows those who have poor suction to be able to drink from this system.
The Front Mounted Drinking System is suitable for individuals who have limited movement and/or poor suction.
The Provale Cup is suitable for individuals who are at risk of aspiration when they drink thin liquids. The Provale Cup controls the amount of liquid that is delivered each time that the cup is tipped up. One teaspoon ( 5cc) of liquid is dispensed each time the cup is raised in a normal drinking motion. The cup must be returned to the upright position before more liquid will dispense.
Seek the advice of a physician or speech pathologist prior to using this cup if a diagnosis of Dysphagia has been made.
The Thickened Liquids Cup has been designed for individuals who require thickened liquids. It has two unique features that make it beneficial. First, it has a fully adjustable flow control that regulates the continuous output of liquids. It can be adjusted from a normal flow to a greatly reduced liquid delivery rate (as little as a drip at a time). Once the flow rate is selected, the regulator can be locked so that the user cannot adjust the flow rate (and thus inadvertently increase their risk of choking or aspiration). Secondly, the cup is specifically designed to provide liquids to the user without the need for the cup to be tipped at an angle of greater than 60 degrees. A user will be able to completely empty the cup without increasing the angle of tilt beyond 60 degrees.
This page last updated 04-15-10.