You at the threshold of your adult life – turning 22 in just 6 weeks, about to graduate and to walk down the aisle with your betrothed. You have earned all of your college credits and are just waiting for the commencement ceremonies. You have your entire life ahead of you! Then the unbelievable happens, you are at a graduation soiree and someone jumps on you, snapping your head back. The next thing you know, you're in recovery being told you have a spinal cord injury at C5 and C6 and you're paralyzed. What do you do?

Jim was ‘that guy’. This is Jim’s story. He spent 16 months in rehabilitation, and then went home to tie the knot with the woman he’d wanted to marry 16 months before. I asked Jim a fully loaded question – what did you do? He said, he grieved a bit – then he got on with life. Wow! did he ever! I could write an epic about all of Jim’s accomplishments – they are so many, and they're all vital. But, his most important accomplishment (besides a devoted, and happy, wife and a daughter attending college, which are huge accomplishments in and of themselves) is the development of The PUMP.

As a tetraplegic, Jim knew that to combat urinary tract infections (UTIs) and also combat hypotension, he needed to drink a substantial amount of water. But, as a tetraplegic, he couldn’t use the toilets or urinals on his own. He relied completely on a urinary bag to contain what his body couldn’t hold. This is where the problem came in. He needed to consume a lot of water, but he was not able to empty his urinary leg bag on his own. Put yourself in his shoes - can you imagine, or do you have first-hand knowledge, of how embarrassing it is to ask a caregiver (or a co-worker, a neighbour or a friend) to empty your urinary leg bag for you all the time?

It was extremely difficult and expensive to find a professional caregiver or aid who could come on demand to empty his leg bag. When he was at work, he had to rely on other employees to empty his urine bag. It wasn’t just anyone who could empty it – they had to be shown how to do it. Jim recalls those days with embarrassment. When he was at home he’d have to telephone his wife when he needed his leg bag emptied, and she would have to leave her job to come tend to his urine bag. Jim knew first-hand how inconvenient and embarrassing it was to have to rely on a caregiver, a co-worker or his wife to empty his urinary leg bag.

Jim and Robert are the co-founders of The PUMP wheelchair pump. They met while they worked together for a major communications company. They agreed that there had to be a device out there to give people with spinal cord injuries, such a quadriplegia or tetraplegia, the independence to handle that part of their hygiene with simplicity and dignity. However, amazingly there wasn't. The only products available to Jim or anyone else suffering from a spinal cord injury, were manual or electric devices that emptied the urine from the urinary leg bag onto the ground. Not hygienic or sanitary at all!

So, Jim and Robert put their sharp minds together to create a solution to this problem and the plan for The PUMP wheelchair pump was created. Jim and Robert got to work and built the wheelchair pump prototype in 2004.

Because Jim was a tetraplegic, there was no one more qualified than him to test The PUMP and put it through its paces. Back up, there was nobody more qualified than Jim and his wife. Jim confided in me that his better half played a huge roll in the improvements that were made on The PUMP, from start to finish. How so? Because while Jim could see what The PUMP wheelchair pump needed from an end user’s perspective, his wife could see what improvements were needed for the caregiver (to make night cleanings easier, etc.).

Several versions of The PUMP later, each more successful than the last – there is finally a simple, sanitary and civilized way for individuals with spinal cord injuries to empty a full leg bag.

For over 7 years now, Jim has been using The PUMP wheelchair pump. In his own words, It has given him back his freedom and independence – but most of all – it has given him the ability to drink all the water he needs. 7 years ago, when Jim first started using The PUMP, he only had to empty his urinary bag 2-3 times per day. Now, he empties it 6-7 times per day – when it suits him, on his schedule - and on his own.

What is The PUMP wheelchair pump and what does it do? The PUMP is a revolutionary new power wheelchair accessory which enables individuals to empty their urinary leg bags, with just the press of a button, directly into a toilet or urinal. The PUMP attaches to the outlet of the leg bag and directs the flow of urine out through the tip of a flexible wand. A simple switch activated by the user turns the pumping unit on and off, and an ultra compact 12-volt Lithium Polymer Battery powers The PUMP for up to 5 days with an overnight charge. The PUMP installs easily and quickly on virtually any power wheelchair.

The PUMP couldn’t be easier. When your urinary leg bag is full, maneuver your wheelchair within arm’s length of a toilet or urinal and extend the wand. Press the switch twice to activate the pumping unit and urine will flow from the leg bag and exit from the tip of the wand. When the leg bag is empty, press the switch once to turn off the pumping unit and return the wand to its stowed position. That’s it. It’s simple, sanitary and civilized.

Others who've suffered spinal cord injuries are discovering its benefits as well. After all, it’s not just Jim who uses The PUMP wheelchair pump. These individuals with spinal cord injuries are singing the praises of The PUMP wheelchair pump and how it has given them back their independence and allows them to maintain proper hydration thereby reducing risks of hypotension and the frequency of urinary tract infections (UTIs).

To get The PUMP for you, or someone you know and love, buy The PUMP wheelchair pump now at www.DryDiapersPlus.com or you can find the The PUMP wheelchair pump at www.DryDiapersPlus.ca . If you need 1 for your primary wheelchair and 1 for your back up – buy both at the same time and you will save $75.