Wheelchair Service Provision Course

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This course is brought to you by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the World Health Organisation (WHO)

Course Information

These are links to course information:

Introduction

The wheelchair is one of the most commonly used assistive devices for enhancing personal mobility, which is a precondition for enjoying human rights and living in dignity. For many people, an appropriate, well-designed and well-fitted wheelchair can be the first step towards integration, participation and inclusion in society.

A wheelchair must meet the user’s individual needs and environmental conditions, provide postural support, and be safe and durable. The wheelchair must be available and affordable and be maintainable and sustainable in the country of use. This is not always easy, because wheelchair users are a diverse group with different requirements and environmental and socioeconomic conditions.

A wheelchair is much more than just an assistive device for many people with impairments; it is the means by which they can exercise their human rights and achieve inclusion and equal participation. A wheelchair provides mobility, ensures better health and quality of life, and assists people with an impairment to live full and active lives in their communities.

Aim

This course aims to provide a basic theoretical understanding of wheelchair mobility and to develop an understanding of the theoretical principles, skills and knowledge underlying the management skills and knowledge in the management of wheelchair service delivery.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this course you will be able to:

• list at least seven benefits of an appropriate wheelchair for a wheelchair user
• explain how wheelchair service personnel can support a wheelchair user’s right to personal mobility
• list at least five ways wheelchair users can be actively involved in wheelchair provision
• list physical and/or functional reasons why a wheelchair user may need additional postural support
• list four benefits of additional postural support
• list at least five design features of an appropriate wheelchair
• explain how wheelchair design can impact on user function and satisfaction
• discus how wheelchair users may be referred to a wheelchair service;
• explain the purpose of wheelchair assessment;
• examine the use of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) in Wheelchair Assessment
• discuss how the assessment interview can assist in selecting the most appropriate wheelchair and to identify what a wheelchair user may need to learn
• demonstrate the correct way to take measurements from a wheelchair user for an appropriate wheelchair
• list all the steps to fitting in the correct order
• describe how to check size and common adjustments of a wheelchair for an individual wheelchair user.
• list 5 skills wheelchair service personnel can teach wheelchair users when they receive a new wheelchair
• describe two “good practice training methods”
• describe how to care for a wheelchair at home
• identify three common technical problems with a wheelchair and explain how these problems can be solved within the local community/context

Course Structre

This course will be divided into 4 sections and it is suggested (but not required) that each section be completed over the duration of approximately a week. Please note that no deadlines are applied and this course can be started and completed according to your own schedule. We expect the required elements of each section/week to take around 4-6 hours depending on your schedule and learning style. Additionally there are many optional resources provided and if you choose to review these the course could take significantly longer to complete.

It’s not going to be easy, we’ll expect you to work hard for your completion certificate! You won’t be sitting back and watching webinars, we’ll expect you to undertake reading tasks, complete quizzes, perform literature searches and other learning activities. You’ll need to reflect on your own experiences and make written contributions to the discussion forum. This forum is where we can learn from each other’s experiences and knowledge from all around the world! At the end of the course, when you have completed all of the required elements, you will be able to download a certificate of completion and 16 Physioplus points will be added to your personalised learning dashboard.

Course Outline

• Section 1: Introduction to Wheelchair Mobility and Wheelchair Service Provision
• Section 2: Wheelchair Design and Steps to Appropriate Wheelchair Provision
• Section 3: The Wheelchair User: Fitting, Wheelchair Skills and Maintenance Training
• Section 4: Wheelchair Service Delivery; Wheelchair Provision and Stakeholders.
• Section 5: Final Tasks and Optional Assignment

Types of learning activity involved

Reading Physiopedia pages, journal articles, book chapters. Watching videos. Attempting quizzes. Participating in an international discussion forum.

Time Commitment

Completing this course will involve approximately 16 hours of learning activities that can be completed on a participant’s own schedule.

Requirements to complete this course

In order to complete this course and receive a course completion certificate you will need to:

1. Be part of the Physiopedia Plus Community Culture.
2. Log as completed all the required learning activities (represented by the orange icons!).
3. Actively and appropriately participate in the course discussions.
4. Pass a final quiz with a score of 80% or more.
5. Complete a course evaluation form.