This year we head over to Baltimore, Maryland, for the 94th annual AOTA conference & expo. From April the 3rd until the 6th, thousands of OT professionals and businesses will descend upon Maryland to create a massive conference and expo that is the largest of the year in Occupational Therapy, and a chance to learn new advancements, and even old ones, as well as personal progression are all available to everyone who attends, with the opportunity to forge new friendships, and strengthen old acquaintances.

The program guide you receive upon entry will keep you informed of all the events that are on during the course of the expo, including but not limited to Tech Day, Fitness Sessions, International Breakfast and the Eleanor Clarke Slagle Lecture.

We will be there to not only meet new people, and see some old acquaintances, but to inform as many people as we can about our new products, latest innovations and of course introduce our daily living aids to a new audience.

An opportunity to venture in to the wonderful city of Baltimore is there too, which has been advised to do if you can drag yourself away from the large-scale expo. With local landmarks such as Fort Henry, the Inner Harbor and the National Aquarium amongst others, it would be silly to miss such an opportunity.

So pack your bags and jump on the plane, and we shall see you there!

Another year has past, and we will soon be welcoming another New Year.

For Tenura, it has been another year of great development, and we would like to thank you all for helping us get to this point.

We will halt all retail operations on the 24th of December, and we re-open on the 2nd January. Any orders made in between these times will be fulfilled from the 2nd of January onwards.

To make up for this, we are offering a 15% discount on all orders with the code ‘FESTIVE15′. Perhaps you could pick up a late Christmas present for yourself or a loved one?

From all of us at Tenura, have a happy Christmas, and we wish you all the best for the New Year!

One of our most popular products in the Tenura range is the Anti –Slip Aqua Safe bath strips and discs. These products are a very simple, very subtle and a very effective solution for helping the prevention of slips and falls in baths, showers and wet rooms. The surface of the product is designed to have exceptional grip when the product is wet but also to not be too abrasive on bare skin and cause skin irritation. The design also makes the product very easy to clean and will not harbor bacteria. This makes them far more effective than rubber bath mats.

One thing I would like to touch on in this Blog is the correct application method for applying the Aqua Safe stickers, due to questions raised by customers, on a weekly basis.

The adhesive sticker on the back of the product will only stick to a completely dry surface. Otherwise the stickers will peel up after a couple of rinses. We suggest wiping the shower surface down with an alcohol based cleaner to remove any moisture or residue that may be on the bottom of the tray. We only recommend alcohol based cleaners, as using cream based cleaners leave a residue which will contaminate the adhesive, causing it to fail.

If they applied correctly the Strips or Discs are guaranteed for up to 5 years.  There is no set way to apply the stickers but you can download our suggested application template for the Aqua Safe stickers from these links:

• Discs
• Strips

A couple months ago we provided sample packs of Tenura products to different Occupational Therapists around the country. We wanted to get an honest opinion of our products from professionals. The feedback we received has been great and a lot of the Occupational Therapists who received sample packs and have spoken to at exhibitions now recommend Tenura products to their clients.

Recently we have received photographs from the Merlin Centre in Cornwall. Their experts provide a range of care, support and therapies to improve the lives of people with Multiple Sclerosis and other neurological conditions. Not only do they help the individuals effected, but they help their families and the people who care for them too.

The people there have been finding new ways to use Tenura at the day centre. One of the exercises they have been doing helps rehabilitate people to allow them to walk freely again. This has included the application of our Aqua Safe, anti slip stickers on a wooden walk way. This not only aids grip, but assists with co-ordination too, as the contrast of the white stickers on brown wooden flooring makes a clear visual target for people to place their feet.

This is not the only exercise being implemented at the Merlin Centre that features Tenura products, but we hope to embellish on those in another blog post.

If you have any interesting ways of using our bathroom stickers, aside from their intended use, please let us know, we would love to hear from you.

We have recently added one of our new products to the site for general sale; anti slip cutlery grips are a great way for people with strength impairments to their grip to be able to continue daily tasks with smaller handheld items, such as cutlery, pens, pencils, toothbrushes and more!

Tenura anti slip cutlery grips are made from our 100% non toxic silicone, moulded in to a large, tapered cylindrical shape to increase grip whilst lessening strain on muscles and joints, but retaining comfort. The universal insert will conform to any suitable handheld item you insert into it, and will not affect the outside surface.

Anti slip cutlery grips can be used successfully in many environments, including but not limited to domestic, clinical and care, where they have various uses.

Try some of our anti slip cutlery grips today, and let us know what you think!

In this edition of the Tenura Blog, I am going to discuss Latex and Latex Free daily living aids.

When doing some product research, I was intrigued into where latex comes from and why so many people are allergic to latex.

What is Latex?

Latex is a liquid substance that is naturally produced in trees. It acts as the trees natural defence mechanism against insects wanting to nest in its bark. Latex is made up of the tree’s natural oils, starches, sugars, gums, proteins, resins and tannins.

Why Buy Latex Free Daily Living Aids?

Latex is an irritant, which can also be manufactured synthetically. Up to 10% of the population has a reaction to natural rubber Latex and Synthetic Latex. The majority of people who are allergic to latex come out in a rash known as Dermatitis. But it can also affect people in more serious ways.

Latex is found in all rubber products such as rubber gloves, elastic bands, rubber clothing, shoes and baby bottles, to mention but a few. Latex is also found in a lot of daily living aids currently available in the market.

Tenura silicone daily living aids designed for independent living are non-toxic, chemically inert and made entirely from Latex free Silicone. So, there will be no problems for anybody using Tenura products on a regular basis.

Why do People Have Allergic Reactions to Latex?

Latex contains certain allergens that can be found in foods such as bananas, passion fruit and kiwis. With all allergies your body produces antibodies to fight off what it believes to be an infection, the body then releases histamine which, in turn, makes symptoms of allergies start displaying. Symptoms of a latex allergy include; itching, rash, sneezing, wheezing and a scratchy throat. If you believe you have a latex allergy, seek advice from an allergist and avoid contact with latex products until seen.

The Physiotherapy Daily Living Aids Market

We at Tenura are always looking to improve and expand our range of Tenura non-slip products. In the next few months, we will be introducing a few physiotherapy products. Our new daily living aids are in the early stages of development and will be Latex free, we are excited to see how people will benefit from them.

We have noticed from doing product research that within the physiotherapy market there is a surprisingly large amount of Latex equipment out there. We hope that more people can feel the benefit of there being more Latex free options to choose from. The new products, like the rest of the Tenura range, will be Latex-free.

What new products would you like to see introduced to the current Tenura daily living aid range? Let us know via social media, you can find Tenura on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Beings as we haven’t made a blog post in an age, I thought I would delve deep into the recesses of my brain to bring you some updates regarding what has been going on behind the scenes.

As mentioned in our last blog post; Working with OT’s for Innovation in Daily Living Aids, we have been working alongside various occupational therapists to get an outside perspective on current and future products to ensure that our target audience is getting a product that would efficiently assist them in day to day life, and, as we’ve discovered, more! More updates to this will be forthcoming in future blog posts (subscribe to the blog, here), but I can assure you, there have been some excellent discoveries through the use of Tenura daily living aids that you will be able to try in your own home or occupational therapy centre.

You all may have been wondering where our next line of Tenura daily living aids is. I can assure you that they are on their way. You can explore the current range on our website now. I must remain tight-lipped on the new range, as I am not the one who calls the shots on when they are announced (you must ask the organ grinders for that). When they are announced to the public, you will certainly hear about them, and not just from us either, there are a few outside-professionals already in the know, due to tests and feedback to help us develop them. We are very happy with them and should be an astounding evolution in daily living aids.

Is there anything you are hoping to see in the future of low-tech, daily living aids? Please connect with us through our social accounts; Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, we love to hear your thoughts. To stay up to date with Tenura daily living aid releases, subscribe to the blog.

Since the OT exhibition in Glasgow we have been looking at developing some of the newer products in the Tenura range. I have been working alongside Occupational Therapists and asking them;

• How did useful did they find Tenura products?
• What changes to our products could we make so that clients get the most out of our range?
• What other products should we try create and develop?

In the search for answers, we gave a sample of all our products to the Merlin MS Centre in Cornwall.

http://­www.­merlinmscentre.­org.­uk/

The Merlin centre provides a range of expert care, support and therapies to people with Multiple Sclerosis and other neurological conditions.

They have been very helpful in giving us an evaluation of the Tenura range. One person in particular is Kath Smith, who is an Occupational Therapist at The Merlin Centre. Kath mentioned that she found the Tenura products we sent really useful in the centre, and products such as the Tenura Extreme mats in particular have been used not only as mats for trays, but in activities in physiotherapy sessions, more on this soon.

We believe that the best way to develop our range is for us to work directly alongside Occupational Therapists, as their experience and insight will be invaluable in the innovation of current and future Tenura daily living aids.

COT 37th Annual Conference and Exhibition at the SECC, 18th-20th June

The College of Occupational Therapists Annual Conference and Exhibition is into it’s 37th year, which is a phenomenal achievement, showing just how important the work of OT’s is.

Not only does it give OT’s the opportunity to learn new skills, share findings and find out about more opportunities in the profession, they can also test and try out new products from a vast range of companies who manufacture/­invent new innovations in the industry.

This is where we come in…. we will be exhibiting this year and displaying new products, as well as informing people about our new anti-microbial material, which you can read about in one of our previous posts; Tenura Anti Microbial Silicone: An Innovation in Daily Living Aids.

The exhibition will be held at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow, Scotland, and will run from the 18th of June, until the 20th June.

You will be able to come and see us at stand 79, Ben will be there to meet and greet all visitors.

We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Established as far back as 1917, The American Occupational Therapy Associationis a professional body that addresses the interests and concerns of practitioners or students within occupational therapy to help improve the quality of these services.

While primarily American, it is proud to have members all over the world, consisting of therapists, assistants and students, all working together to improve the access to health care services for consumers, while helping their members professional development.

AOTA not only provides resources to meet these goals, but also set the standards to ensure high quality, standing in as an advocate for the improvement of health care.

Regarding Tenura and our dealings with AOTA? Well this will be our second year at their annual conference and expo, located at the San Diego Convention Centre, in California, running from Thursday the 25th until Sunday the 28th of April. We will be exhibiting alongside our exclusive distributor of Tenura in the US, Maddak, one of the largest retailers of daily living aids in America.

Judging by the success of last years exhibit, we can be sure that, with our recent updates, we will have much, much more to again catch the attention of visitors to the AOTA conference.

During the welcome ceremony, between the hours of 4 and 5.30pm, Aron Ralston, Adventurer and subject of the film ‘127 Hours’ which stars James Franco, a film based on Aron’s unfortunate experiences while canyoneering, where he had to amputate his own arm to free himself from a boulder that trapped him. Ralston will be one of the keynote speakers, and will talk about that experience and occupational therapies role in his recovery.

If you haven’t seen ‘127 hours’, I would recommend it highly, it’s a truly excellent movie.

We will be monitoring all the usual channels as best as we can ( I am in the UK, so the time difference is quite large ), but still, we will be Tweeting before the event too, so please let us know if you will be in attendance, and I will keep people up to date with where our stand is.

It would be great to see you all!

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We are exhibiting at Naidex National again this year, and we’re really looking forward to seeing all the great products and innovations, meeting many great people, and making many new connections.

Naidex National is the largest disability, rehabilitation and homecare event in the UK, with over 300 exhibitors, enabling them, and the many visitors it brings, to trade and meet all in one, very large complex. Events such as this help innovate many products and services, building a brighter future for many, many people.

Tenura will be exhibiting from start to finish, bringing with us our new and present range of products, with friendly advice for anyone who comes looking for it. We hope to be able to give and take experience to help ourselves and others to come up with more ideas, allowing us to innovate our range of daily living aids, and hopefully give other people fresh perspectives on their ideas and products.

We will be live on the social networks, updating visitors and exhibitors to keep up to date with where we are, what we’ve seen and who we’ve met.

Follow and join us if you haven’t already, to help keep you up to date. You never know, you may get to meet some of the gang!

We will bring more details such as stand number, nearer the time.

We look forward to seeing many of you there!

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