Wheelchair Service Provision Case Studies - Wheelchair Skills

Moses[edit | edit source]

Moses is 23 years old. He fell from the back of a truck two years ago and became paraplegic. He spent one year in the hospital and then returned to his home village with an old donated wheelchair.The wheelchair broke very quickly and he was unable to move around. He developed a pressure sore which has now healed.

Moses has just received a new wheelchair with a pressure relief cushion through the wheelchair service.This wheelchair is designed to go over rough ground. He is very excited about going home with this wheelchair and is hopeful that he will be more independent. [2]

Sian[edit | edit source]

Sian is 40 years old and has a bilateral above knee amputation. He has been a wheelchair user for 20 years and has had five wheelchairs over that time. He finds that the wheelchairs he has break down quickly.

He is very active and works in a local shop. He travels from his home to the shop every day, on rough, bumpy and often muddy paths. He demonstrated for the wheelchair service personnel how he can do wheelies.

He has just been prescribed a new wheelchair. He is hoping that this wheelchair will last longer than his last one, which broke down after six months. [2]

Zoe[edit | edit source]

Zoe is 16 years old. She had polio as a young girl, and now cannot walk. She is very shy,and has not been to school.Her mother has given her lessons at home and she can read and write well. She has just received a new wheelchair and has shown the wheelchair service personnel how she can transfer easily into and out of the chair.

Zoe is interested in attending a local vocational school, however, she does not think that she can manage getting to the school and back. There are a few steps into the school building. She is also worried about how she would go to the toilet while at the school. [2]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. Assistive Technology for All. WSTP Basic Video Series: 4. Wheelchair Mobility Skills. Available from: https://youtu.be/juLFv9kmpPs[last accessed 30/06/18]
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Sarah Frost, Kylie Mines, Jamie Noon, Elsje Scheffler, and Rebecca Jackson Stoeckle. Wheelchair Service Training Package - Reference Manual for Participants - Basic Level. World Health Organization, Geneva. 2012