There can be a fine line in prescribing manual wheelchairs that determines the balance between equipment assisting to maintain functional performance, improve functional performance, or be the contributing factor in a decline in functional performance. As prescribing therapists, we aim to “cause no harm” through the interventions we recommend. So how do we ensure that we have sound clinical reasoning for the make and model of manual wheelchairs we prescribe when there is a wide variety of shapes, sizes, forms, and materials available? How do you determine what accessories will add function vs hinder function? What information helps you decipher the options available, helping to justify the choice of product you and your client have decided on?
This hands-on interactive training day gives you the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of specific manual wheelchair features that you can adjust and prescribe to enhance the functional outcomes of manual wheelchair users. The day will cover:
• Introduction to the assessment processes required to set functional outcome goals
· How to evaluate the existing manual wheelchair
• Gain a better understanding of manual wheelchair features to assist in refining prescription processes which will assist in reaching therapeutic outcomes
• Understand the adaptability in manual wheelchairs that can be tweaked to improve function
• Develop a clinical pathway to determine when to recommend a “fixed” wheelchair frame vs a folding
• Learn elements of manual wheelchair skills to include in your assessment and intervention practices
• Trial a range of manual wheelchair configurations to understand the impact they have on functional outcomes.
• Decipher “off-road mobility” from “outdoor mobility” and the impact this has on features prescribed in manual wheelchairs, including the impact that adding power may have on the manual wheelchair
