Matthew MacKenzie, owner of MacKenzie Atlantic, and Michael Simms from NSCC received a round of applause when they showcased a collaboration between MacKenzie Atlantic and NSCC on a patented device designed by the college's mechanical engineering students to help reposition people who have slipped into a slouch position in a wheelchair. The device, undergoing the final stages of testing, allows caregivers to reposition people in wheelchairs by reducing the patient's weight by 86%. MacKenzie Atlantic partnered with NSCC as an industry partner to further test, make design improvements, manufacture and market the device.
This new way of repositioning a patient protects the caregiver's back as well as the patient's skin and dignity, and - if used widely - has the potential to save organizations and taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in preventable short-term illness claims. As the Premier put it, "it's a real game-changer."