Personal grooming includes activities such as showering, dressing, toileting and attention to personal presentation, such as brushing hair and applying makeup.
An individual may find it difficult to undertake certain personal grooming tasks such as holding soap or a brush due to reduced grip strength, or may have difficulty reaching the scalp to apply shampoo due to reduced range of movement. Underlying causes of these restrictions may include pain in the arms and hands, upper limb amputation, quadriplegia or neuromuscular diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Workplace solutions and adjustments
Personal hygiene and grooming aids assist people with disability to manage their personal care needs more independently at home and in the workplace. A variety of tools and aids have been designed to assist people who have difficulties with personal grooming due to reduced fine motor skills:
Other solutions that may be of assistance include:
- using grooming items that are designed to keep the wrist in a neutral position, so that any force applied does not place excess strain on the wrist
- increasing grip size of slimmer handles to optimise grip size and thus reduce tension in the hand muscles
- using handles with non-slip grips
Further information regarding specific areas of personal grooming and solutions to assist people with fine motor impairments in these areas include:
References
Independent Living Centres Australia 2007, Document title? Independent Living Centres Australia, Canberra, viewed 12 September 2007, www.ilcaustralia.org.au
Stevenson, M.G. 1999, Notes on the Principles of Ergonomics, Mike Stevenson Ergonomics, Sydney.