Fast and Easy way to put-on pants (that need a belt)

Question

Problem:

I get a lot of people dressed and when I do most of them wear belts. I usually have to put the belts on myself, but my arm span sometimes doesn't cover their waist so I have to dodge around them. This opens me to have to be very close them (which isn't a problem most of the time). I have trouble keeping their pants up and buckling it at the same time, especially for those with large waist.

Things I have tried:

• Putting a belt on their pants before I put the pants on. This does not solve the problem of their pants slipping down while I buckle.

• Getting help. This works, but sometimes help is not there. Therefor, this is not a viable method.

• Putting the pants on and then the belt. This is hard because I have to not only make sure their pants do not slip down, but also have to dodge around them(if they are heavyset).

Anything may help. But I am looking for a solution that is not going to require any extra materials or assistance. Asking the person to hold up their pants is not always a option.

Answer 1

I don't think you'll be able to solve this without additional tools (plus you tagged it with substitute tools), so I've come up with a device which should solve your problem.

You'll require some string, and a collar. You'll want to tie the string around the collar, and then put the collar on your neck. When you need to put a belt on someone, you tie the string around one of the "hoops" in their pants you put a belt through. This device will hold the pants up for you without requiring you to use your hands (since your neck is holding it up). You'll need to make sure the string is long enough so you can get around the person, but short enough that it'll hold up the belt (if it's too short, the pants will just fall to the ground). The exact length is a matter of personal preference, so I'd suggest experimenting to see what you like best. Having varying lengths of string tied to the collar would be a good idea too, so that you have different strings for different sizes of people.

Answer 2

I think you need to add a tool as you only have two arms of given length. (And growing a third arm isn't really feasible :), ref Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy)

My suggestion is therefore to put the belt in the pants beforehand and use suspenders with alligator claws to hold the pants up while you buckle the pants. Remove suspenders afterwards as there is no need for both belt and suspenders, and it's, supposedly, against the fashion rules for men.

Answer 3

Suspenders seem to be the obvious answer.

solution 1: Suggest to the people under your care to use suspenders instead of belts. That way, no extra tools needed on your part.

solution 2: If they don't want to wear suspenders instead of belts, you could still use suspenders to keep the pants from slipping while you buckle them up and take off the suspenders when you're done. Ask the people under your care to buy the suspenders and keep them in their rooms to be used when they get dressed, that way you don't have to buy or carry extra tools.

solution 3: voids your no extra tools preference but if asking the people under your care to buy and store the suspenders doesn't work, you could buy a pair that you carry around and use on multiple patients. A pair of suspenders easily fits in a pocket along with certain tools you presumably already have with you.

Answer 4

I'm assuming this is related to nursing or medical procedures, rather than servicing people too lazy to buckle their own belts. This means you have some latitude with positioning your patient.

Start with your first step: thread the belt through the belt loops.

Pull the pants onto the patient. Holding the pants in place, get the patient to lie down. To help keep the pants roughly in place, you might have to get them to sit first, then lay down. The lying-down position is much better than the seated position because it avoids tummy action (the tummy tends to push out when the person is seated, making it hard to secure the buckle) and helps avoid unintended lower-than-tummy action.

Note: if the patient finds it difficult to move between standing and lying down, you may have to pull their pants on while they are lying down.

Move to the person's side and help them buckle up.

Answer 5

I believe the difficulty is with your technique of buckling the belt not with threading the belt through the belt loops on the trousers.

After you first thread the belt into the belt loops around the trouser waistband, hold the stiffer belt as the person steps into the trousers and pulls on the trousers.

Slide your hands or alternate your grip around to the ends of the waistband so the trousers don't drop to the floor.

Pull the waistband closed to button it or to engage the clasp with both hands.

Release one hand from the waistband to grasp the belt buckle and waist band simultaneously. Release the other hand to grasp the eyelet end of the belt to thread it through the buckle.

Now, you can pull the eyelet end of the belt to cinch it tight-enough to hold the trousers while you buckle the belt closed at the proper tension to keep them on your partner.

In short, don't release your grip on the trousers until they are sufficiently fastened. You will require enough dexterity to work one-handed for some of the steps.