Power Mobility and Safety Concerns
Power mobility allows those who are in long-term care in their daily activities and leisure activities. These devices also raise safety concerns, which must be addressed.
The majority of participants choose to adopt a teleological perspective and give all residents the chance to test a device, rather than exclude residents with specific diagnosis, which could be considered an unfair risk management.
Mobility
A power mobility device enables people who are disabled to move around their community or home and participate in daily living activities that might otherwise be unavailable to them. These devices be a danger not just to the person using them, but also to those who are in their the space. Occupational therapists need to carefully assess each client's safety needs to make the most appropriate suggestions regarding powered mobility.
In greenpower mobility scooter (von Zweck 1999), OTs from three residential care facilities within the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority conducted qualitative interviews with residents regarding their use of power mobility. The aim was to create a framework for client-centered power mobility prescribing. The findings revealed four main themes: (1) the meaning of power mobility, (2) learning the rules of the road, (3) red flags concern about safety and (4) solutions.
Power mobility can greatly improve the quality of life for people who have limited mobility, allowing them to participate in a variety of daily living activities, both at home and in the community (Brandt, 2001; Evans, 2000). Self-care, productive and recreational occupations are vital for physical and mental well-being of older adults. For many with advanced illnesses, power mobility allows them to take part in these important activities.
It was considered unacceptable by the participants to take away a wheelchair in order to alter their life story and trajectory and stop them from doing the same things they did before their disease advanced. This was particularly applicable to those in Facility 1 who were only able use their power chairs for a short period of time and were now dependent on others to push them.
Another possible solution is to limit the speed at which some residents drove their chairs, however this raised a number of issues such as a lack of privacy and the impact on other residents in the community. The most drastic solution to safety concerns was to remove the wheelchair from a resident's.
Safety
Power mobility lets people move around more freely. They can also take part in a broader range of activities, and run around on their own. However, with increased mobility comes a higher risk of accidents. For some, these incidents could result in serious injuries to themselves or others. This is why it is important to think about the security of your client before recommending that they use a power mobility.
The first step in assessing safety is to determine if your client can safely operate their scooter or power wheelchair. Depending on their impairment and current health, this may involve a physical assessment by a doctor or occupational therapist, and an interview with a mobility specialist to determine whether a specific device would be appropriate for them. In certain situations, your client will need a lift for their vehicle to be capable of loading and unloading the mobility device at home, workplace or community.
Another aspect of safety is knowing the rules of the road. This includes sharing space with other wheelchair users, pedestrians and drivers of buses or cars. This topic was mentioned by most participants in the study.
For some this, it meant learning to use their wheelchairs on sidewalks, instead of driving through areas that were crowded or over curbs (unless specifically designed to do so). green power folding mobility scooter drove more cautiously and kept an eye out for pedestrians in an area that was crowded.
The last and least popular option was taking away the chair of a person, which was viewed as a double punishment that would result in losing mobility independently and preventing access to facilities and community activities. This was the viewpoint of most participants who had their chairs removed among them Diane and Harriet.
Other suggestions made by participants included educating residents staff, family members and other residents about the safety of power mobility. This could include teaching driving basics (such as which side to walk on in the hallway) and encouraging residents to practice driving when they go outside and assisting them to recognize how their behavior affects the mobility of others.
Follow-Up
A child's ability and willingness to be a part of the world can be profoundly affected by a power mobility device. There is little research into the experiences children have when learning to make use of these devices. This study employs the post-previous method to analyze the effects of 6 months of use with one of the four early mobility devices on a school-aged group of children suffering from severe cerebral palsy (CP).
We conducted interviews in qualitative format with 15 parents, as well as occupational and physical therapists for children. Thematic analysis revealed three main themes. The first, 'Power in mobility,' explained how the use of powered devices changed more than just a child's locomotor abilities. Learning to drive a power mobility device can be an emotional, transformative journey for the participants.
The second theme 'There's no cookbook' revealed that learning how to make use of an equipment for mobility was a process that unfolded in a way that was cyclical over time. Therapists were tasked with unearthing what was realistic for the individual child's needs and abilities. During the training phase, and afterwards, therapists needed to be patient with children as well as parents. A number of parents and therapists emphasized a need to help families celebrate their successes and work through problems that arise from the training process.
The third theme, "Shared space", looked at how the use of a power device can impact other people's lives and interactions. The majority of participants in this study believed that people should be considerate when using a power device. This was especially true when driving in public spaces. A few participants also mentioned that they've encountered situations in which someone else's property was damaged by the use of an electric mobility device, or in which an individual was injured by a driver who failed to yield the right-of-way.
Overall, the findings of this study suggest that short-term socialization and power mobility training is possible for preschoolers with CP in certain classroom settings. Future research should continue to study the training and results for this kind of intervention in young children with CP. This will hopefully lead to the development of more uniform training protocols for this group.