Purpose
To assess mobility
Equipment
A stopwatch/timer, tape measure
Directions
The patient may wear their regular footwear and can use a walking aid if this is usually required. Seat the patient in an arm chair and mark a line three metres away on the floor, eg, with masking tape. Do not conduct the TUG test if you feel the patient may fall during the test.
Instructions to the patient
When I say “Go”, I want you to:
1. Stand up from the chair.
2. Walk to the line on the floor at your normal pace.
3. Turn.
4. Walk back to the chair at your normal pace.
5. Sit down again.
On the word “Go” begin timing. Stop timing after patient has sat back down and record their time below:
|
Time: seconds |
Patients aged 65 years and older who take ≥ 12 seconds to complete the TUG are at risk of falling.
Observe the patient’s postural stability, gait, stride length and sway. Look in particular for:
- slow tentative pace
- loss of balance
- short strides
- little or no arm swing
- steadying self on walls
- shuffling
- en bloc turning
- not using assistive devices properly
Download the toolkit(external link)
