1.4 Describe the benefits of maintaining and improving mobility

This guide will help you answer 1.4 Describe the benefits of maintaining and improving mobility.

Mobility means the ability to move freely and easily. In health and social care, this covers walking, standing, changing position, and being able to use the upper and lower body. Good mobility allows a person to stay independent and live with dignity.

Supporting mobility helps people with a range of needs. This might include older adults, people recovering from illness or injury, or those with disabilities. Helping someone keep or improve their movement brings many positive effects. It supports health, wellbeing, and quality of life.

This guides covers the benefits of maintaining and improving mobility for people receiving care.

Physical Health Benefits

Keeping the body active benefits nearly every system in the body. Moving regularly:

• Improves strength in muscles and bones
• Slows or prevents muscle wastage
• Maintains healthy joints
• Promotes circulation and heart health
• Boosts lung capacity
• Helps digestion
• Reduces the risk of falls
• Lowers risk of pressure sores

Let’s look at each benefit separately.

Stronger Muscles and Bones

When people move about, their muscles stay active. Using muscles helps them stay strong. This reduces the chance of injuries from weakness.

Bones also need movement. Activities such as walking, stretching, and safe exercise help keep bones dense. Less movement can make bones much weaker. This increases the risk of bone breaks.

Preventing Muscle Wastage

Without regular movement, muscles shrink and become weaker. This is called ‘muscle wastage’ or ‘atrophy’. It can begin after just a few days in bed.

Promoting activity stops muscle loss. It keeps people able to do things like wash, dress, and use the toilet without much help.

Flexible Joints

Joint health depends on movement. Regular moving:

• Lubricates joints
• Helps cartilage stay healthy
• Prevents stiffness

Without movement, joints can become ‘frozen’. This limits how far someone can bend or stretch. They may then struggle with tasks like reaching, eating, or getting dressed.

Better Circulation and Heart Health

When people move, blood flows more easily around the body. This gives organs the oxygen and nutrients they need.

Good circulation:

• Lowers risks of blood clots
• Keeps blood pressure stable
• Supports cardiovascular health (the heart and blood vessels)
• Helps wounds heal faster

Physical movement also strengthens the heart muscle. This helps people cope with daily activities, and live longer.

Improved Breathing

Activity helps the lungs work better. When people walk or move, their breathing becomes deeper and more effective. This gets more oxygen into the body.

Better breathing makes coughing easier too. This helps clear the lungs and reduces the risk of chest infections, such as pneumonia.

Healthier Digestion

People who sit or lie down often can develop constipation. Moving about helps the digestive system. It gets the bowel working, so food moves through faster.

Encouraging movement supports appetite and nutrition. It reduces discomfort or pain linked to poor digestion.

Lower Risk of Falls

Staying active improves balance and coordination. It helps protect people from falls, which can lead to serious injury.

Movement also sharpens a person’s awareness of their surroundings. Reacting quickly to hazards can stop falls before they happen.

Protection Against Pressure Sores

Pressure sores are injuries to the skin and tissue caused by sitting or lying in one position too long. By helping people move or shift their weight:

• Blood keeps flowing to the skin
• Skin stays healthy
• Less chance of sores or ulcers developing

This is especially important for people with reduced sensation or who spend a lot of time in bed or a chair.

Mental and Emotional Benefits

Mobility supports more than just the body. It gives people control over their own lives. This has huge benefits for mental health.

Feeling More Independent

People feel happier when they can do things for themselves. Moving freely lets someone choose when to wash, dress, eat, or go to the toilet.

Independence boosts confidence and self-esteem. This reduces feelings of helplessness or frustration.

Reducing Anxiety and Depression

Limited movement can leave people feeling ‘trapped’, bored or isolated. This can affect mood.

Encouraging safe movement:

• Lifts mood
• Increases sense of wellbeing
• Helps manage pain
• Reduces anxiety

Exercise, even gentle movement, can release ‘feel-good’ chemicals in the brain. These include endorphins and serotonin.

Preserving Cognitive Skills

Being able to move helps protect thinking skills. When people move around, they use memory, planning, and coordination.

Movement often involves:

• Making choices (where to go, what to do)
• Solving problems (how to get somewhere safely)
• Keeping attention focused

Staying active keeps the brain sharp. It might help delay or reduce memory loss, especially in older people.

Social Benefits

Good mobility lets people take part in social life. This means more time with family or friends, joining activities, or being out in the community.

Reducing Isolation

When people cannot move, they can feel cut off. They may see fewer visitors, or struggle to join activities.

Improvements in mobility:

• Enable trips to communal areas
• Support visits to friends or day centres
• Improve access to hobbies, games or events

This helps people feel valued and included.

Building Relationships

Active people can speak up for themselves. Moving around helps them meet others and build friendships.

Social contact supports communication skills and has been shown to improve wellbeing.

Preventing Further Disability

When movement is difficult, people might need more support over time. Lack of activity can speed up disability.

Encouraging movement:

• Delays loss of ability
• Keeps people able for longer
• Reduces the need for extra equipment or help

People with better mobility may recover quicker from illness or set-backs. They are more likely to remain at home, rather than needing residential care.

Supporting Rehabilitation

For people recovering from illness, injury or surgery, movement is part of healing. Physiotherapists, occupational therapists and care staff all play a part.

They might use:

• Exercises
• Stretching routines
• Guidance on safe movement
• Adaptive techniques (new or easier ways to do things)

Repeated movement helps people ‘relearn’ old skills. It helps them get back to how they were before. This means less pain, more control, and a quicker recovery.

Encouraging Self-Care

Moving about helps people look after their basic needs.

This includes:

• Bathing
• Getting to and from the toilet
• Dressing
• Feeding themselves
• Climbing stairs

Even small improvements can make a big difference. People feel proud when they can do things for themselves. This reduces embarrassment or dependence.

Helping with Sleep Patterns

People who move enough through the day usually sleep better at night. Activity helps regulate the body’s natural rhythms.

Better sleep can:

• Lift mood
• Boost energy
• Aid physical recovery
• Improve concentration

Limited movement can make people restless, tired or confused, especially at night.

Managing Pain

Moving regularly helps many people manage pain. It prevents ‘seizing up’ of muscles and joints. Pain can discourage movement, but rest alone often makes pain worse in the end.

Staff can help people find safe ways to move. This could be with gentle stretches, supported walks, or using aids.

Reducing Risk of Obesity and Related Illness

Lack of movement can lead to weight gain. This makes other health issues more likely, including:

• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• Joint problems

Being active burns calories. It also strengthens the muscles that help support weight.

Preserving Skin Integrity

Regular movement increases blood flow to the skin. This reduces the risk of damage, including pressure ulcers, bruising or tearing. Healthy skin helps fight infection.

Improving Confidence to Use Mobility Aids

People who practice moving become more confident using walking frames, sticks, or wheelchairs. Regular activity helps them use aids correctly and safely.

Knowing how to use these aids can make life easier. It can lead to fewer accidents and more independence.

Making Choices in Daily Life

Movement supports freedom to choose where and how to do things. For example, a person can decide to:

• Sit by the window
• Join a group activity
• Walk outdoors
• Get their own snacks

Choice brings dignity. People feel more like themselves.

Building Routine and Structure

Daily movement can form a healthy routine. This provides structure, which is reassuring. People look forward to activities and feel a sense of control over their day.

Care plans often include:

• Regular walks
• Exercise sessions
• Personal care tasks
• Leisure activities

Involving a person in planning helps them feel seen and heard.

Preventing Complications from Prolonged Bed Rest

Spending too long in bed can lead to several problems, including:

• Blood clots in the legs
• Chest infections
• Weakened muscles
• Poor digestion
• Pressure sores
• Poor mental health
• Loss of bladder or bowel control

Encouraging safe movement, even gentle activity in bed or sitting in a chair, lowers these risks.

Adapting to Changing Needs

As needs change, movement can be adapted. This might mean:

• Supporting the person to move safely
• Using mobility aids
• Improving the home environment
• Working with therapists to create exercise plans

Ongoing support helps the person keep as much mobility as possible. Even small gains can mean greater independence and comfort.

Supporting Dignity and Quality of Life

Mobility has a direct effect on how someone feels about themselves. People value having control over their body. They want to make their own decisions about where to go and what to do.

Preserving or improving movement helps people:

• Keep their dignity
• Feel ‘normal’
• Maintain personal routines
• Remain hopeful about their abilities

This promotes a good quality of life, even in challenging circumstances.

Reducing Care Needs

Active people often need less support. They can manage personal care and move safely. This means less strain on carers and more freedom for the individual.

Supporting movement is good for care staff as well. It reduces the risk of moving and handling injuries.

Final Thoughts

Maintaining and improving mobility brings wide-ranging benefits.

Supporting movement is a basic part of good health and social care. Workers play a strong role in helping people stay as mobile and independent as possible. This brings better health, greater happiness, and increased wellbeing.