Wheelchair Handling Skills of Caregivers: Comparison Between Anti-tip Devices and a New Design

Wheelchair Handling Skills of Caregivers: Comparison Between Conventional Rear Anti-tip Devices and a New Design

Currently available wheelchairs are often fitted with conventional rear anti-tip devices (C-RADs) to prevent wheelchair rear tips. The limitations of C-RADs have provided an incentive for the design of rear anti-tip devices that permit more rear tip without compromising safety (Arc-RADs).

The purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that caregivers handling occupied wheelchairs equipped with Arc-RADs have higher success rates on RAD-relevant skills than caregivers handling wheelchairs equipped with C-RADs.

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18 years of age or older
• alert, able and willing to follow instructions
• wheelchair users: patients at the Nova Scotia Rehabilitation Centre
• wheelchair users:permission of physician to participate in the study
• caregiver:must provide at least part-time wheelchair-handling care for the wheelchair user in this study, a minimum of one hour per week on average

Exclusion Criteria:

• wheelchair users:suffer from any unstable medical, emotional, or physiological conditions that may interfere with participation
• caregivers:medical condition of their upper limbs, heart or lungs that might cause them discomfort or endanger them when pushing or pulling an occupied wheelchair