Power Mobility and Safety Concerns

green power mobility allows those who are in long-term care to take part in their daily activities and leisure pursuits. However, the devices could also create safety concerns that need to be addressed.

Rather than exclude residents with a specific diagnosis from the use of power mobility that could be considered risk management prejudicial, most participants chose to take the teleological approach and let all residents trial the power mobility device.

Mobility

A power mobility device is an option for those who are unable to move around in their community or home, and participate in daily activities that they may not be able to do. However, these devices may also be a danger to the person who uses them, as well as other individuals who share their environment or space. Occupational therapists should carefully consider the safety needs of each client prior to making recommendations about powered mobility.

In an exploratory study (von Zweck 1999), OTs from three residential care facilities of the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority conducted qualitative interviews with residents about their power mobility use. The goal was to develop a framework for client-centered power mobility prescribing. The results revealed four major themes: (1) the meaning of power mobility, (2) learning the rules of the road, (3) red flags concerning safety, and (4) solutions.

Power mobility can greatly improve the quality of life for people who are mobility-challenged by giving them the opportunity to participate in a variety of daily life activities, both at home and in the community (Brandt, 2001; Evans, 2000). Participation in self-care or leisure activities, as well as productive ones is essential to mental and physical health for older adults, and for those with progressive diseases power mobility can be an opportunity to continue taking part in these vital activities.

Participants found it unacceptable to remove a wheelchair from a resident's home because it would alter their life story and trajectory and hinder them from doing the same things they had prior to their illness progressed. This was especially applicable to those in Facility 1 who had been in a position to use their power mobility scooter chair for a short time and were now reliant on others to push them.

Another solution would be to slow down the speed at which residents drive their chairs. However, this could raise various issues like privacy and the impact on the rest of the community. The most drastic solution to safety concerns was to get rid of the wheelchair of a resident.

Safety

Power mobility allows disabled people to move more freely and take part in a wider variety of activities, and even do around. However, with increased mobility comes a greater risk for accidents. These accidents could result in serious injuries for certain. It is essential to consider the safety of your clients prior to suggesting the use of power Electric mobility scooter Fastest.

First consider determining if your client is able to safely use their green electric scooter or power chair. Depending on their disability and the state of their health, this could involve a physical assessment by a physician or occupational therapist, and a discussion with a mobility expert to determine whether a specific device is suitable for them. In some cases your client will require a lift for their vehicle to be capable of loading and unloading the device at their home, community or workplace.

Another aspect of safety is to learn the rules of the road. This involves sharing space with other pedestrians, other wheelchair users, and drivers of cars, trucks or buses. A majority of the participants discussed this topic.

Some people learned to drive their wheelchairs on sidewalks instead of driving in the midst of crowds or on curbs (unless the wheelchair was designed for this). For others this meant driving more slowly in a busy environment and watching out for pedestrians.

The most popular and least desired option that was to take away a person's wheelchair, was viewed as a double-punishment: losing independence in mobility and preventing the person from participating in activities with the community or at facilities. This was the viewpoint of most participants who were able to remove their chairs, including Diane and Harriet.

Other ideas suggested by participants included educating other residents staff, family members and other residents on the safe operation of power mobility. This could include teaching driving basics (such as the correct side to walk on in the hallway) as well as encouraging residents to practice driving when they go outside and assisting them to be aware of how their actions affect other people's mobility.

Follow-Up

The ability of a child and their willingness to be a part of the world can be greatly affected by a device for power mobility. There isn't much research on the experience that children have when learning to use these devices. This study uses an approach that is post-previous to study the effects of six months of using one of four early mobility devices on a school-aged group of children suffering from severe cerebral palsy (CP).

Qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 parents and children's occupational and physical therapists. Thematic analysis revealed three main themes. The first, 'Power in Mobility explained how the use of powered devices affected more than just locomotor abilities. The experience of learning to drive a powered mobility scooter mobility device is often an emotional and transformative experience.

The second theme, 'There's no such thing as any cookbook,' revealed that the process of learning to utilize the power mobility device was an individualized process that unfolded over time in a cyclical fashion. Therapists were charged with determining what was realistic for each child's needs and abilities. Throughout the training and post-training phases, therapists were also expected to be patient with parents and children. Parents and therapists alike described the need to help families celebrate their achievements and address issues related to the process of training.

The third theme, "Shared space", looked at how the use of the power device can affect the lives of others. The majority of participants in this study believed that people should always be considerate when using a power device. This is particularly true when driving in public spaces. Participants also mentioned that they've witnessed situations where property of someone else's had been damaged by the use a power mobility device, or a person has suffered injuries from a driver who failed to yield the right of way.

The results of this study show that socialization and power mobility training for preschoolers with CP can be done in a variety of classroom settings. Future research should continue to investigate the effectiveness of training and outcomes of this kind of intervention for children with CP. This should hopefully result in the development of more standard training protocols specifically for this group of children.