Stories An Unlikely Hero January 02, 2017 by Susanna Mommsen, Marketing Associate
A man plays a guitar and sings to help a boy in a special needs chair focus on the task he is performing
At Rifton we talk a lot about heroes. They are the people we meet at schools and hospitals who care for people with multiple – and sometimes overwhelming – disabilities. People like Alicia in the photo at right, a physical therapist at Elizabeth Seton Pediatric Center in Yonkers, who is helping Derrick learn to walk. But take another look. Something has caught Derrick’s eye. Notice the...
PT/OT Optimal Positioning with Adaptive Seating for the Child with Cerebral Palsy August 05, 2014 by Lori Potts, PT
A teacher smiles at a child with cerebral palsy who is touching a computer screen from her adaptive chair
Cerebral Palsy is a result of abnormalities in the parts of the brain that control muscle movements. For children with cerebral palsy, their muscle control, coordination, and posture will be affected to varying degrees by this faulty development or damage to areas of their brain. Cerebral Palsy affects approximately three out of every 1,000 children, and symptoms can range from mild to severe physical...
PT/OT Correct Positioning in the Rifton Activity Chair February 25, 2014 by Elena Noble, MPT
Rifton’s adaptive positioning chair for classroom participation in a blue color
The Rifton Activity Chair was designed to encourage functional and active sitting postures for children with cognitive and physical disabilities. Because such children can present with a wide variety of diagnoses and positioning requirements, helping them participate in classroom or family activities can be tough, but with the right chair it’s possible. The Rifton Activity Chair, because of its...
PT/OT Feeding Chairs for Children with Special Needs April 16, 2013 by Lori Potts, PT
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Therapists, teachers and parents are well aware that children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities can face more challenges (and pose more challenges) than the average child. This can be particularly true during mealtimes. Feeding problems commonly associated with disability include dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), and gastro-intestinal reflux (spitting up frequently) as well as oral...
Stories Activity Chair Success, One Child at a Time August 28, 2012 by Lori Potts, PT
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Contributed by Amorita Durgin, Account Manager Before ten-year-old Thomas received his new activity chair much of his day was spent transferring in and out of different pieces of equipment. His feeding chair had no tray, so he had to switch to a prone stander to do homework. Thomas’ grandmother found that chair difficult to use anyway, as it was too low to the ground and he kept sliding out of it...
PT/OT Feeding Equipment for Special Needs Children January 31, 2012 by Ann Walsh, MS/CF-SLP
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Feeding children with oral-motor disability is often challenging, and positioning a child for this task is the key to success. The chair that we like to use for feeding in our clinic is the Rifton Activity Chair. Using the Rifton Hi-Lo Activity Chair is a useful tool in therapy with patients who have feeding and/or swallowing difficulties.  Most of my clientele have some type of neurological...
Tips & Advice Seating Problems Solved by the Rifton Activity Chair August 23, 2011 by Clare Stober
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We always appreciate it when clinicians tell us about unique ways they’ve found to use our innovative medical equipment. Since introducing the Rifton Activity Chair in March 2010 we’ve had a steady stream of compliments and feedback from therapists telling why they like the chair. Here’s a short list sent to us by Judi Rogers OTR/L of Los Angeles Unified School District. Clinicians in...
PT/OT Adaptive Seating: The Right Choice July 22, 2011 by Lori Potts, PT
A woman helps a young boy out of his Rifton special needs chair in a colorful playroom setting
An ICF-based Approach Contributed by Petros Stamatiadis, PT Adaptive seating is essential for children with neurological or neuromuscular disorders such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and meningomyelocele . Because they are prone to developing scoliosis and other musculoskeletal deformities, children with severe motor disorders need special needs seating equipment to help with positioning and...
News Announcing the New Small Size Activity Chair July 20, 2011 by Sam Durgin
A young boy in his small Rifton Activity Chair gets spoon fed by a woman using the device as a feeding chair.
The small Rifton Activity Chair is finally here. The success of the medium and large Rifton Activity Chairs prompted many requests for the chair to be sized for the smallest users. But it is not only a small Rifton Activity Chair. We considered the positioning needs within Early Intervention and designed something to match–a group of accessories we’re calling the “mini kit.” When...
PT/OT Symmetrical Posturing and Adaptive Seating for Task Participation April 14, 2011 by Lori Potts, PT
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Adaptive seating is a big part of pediatric and school-based therapy. Active sitting chairs, through providing unique features and prompts, support postures that enable. With this in mind, the following post series will be dedicated to exploring the concepts and benefits of adaptive seating. The first post – Active Sitting for Task Participation: The Role of Adaptive Chairs – is introductory...
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