Transporting Children in Wheelchairs in Passenger Vehicles: A Comparison of Best Practice to Observed and Reported Practice in a Pilot Sample
By Yonkman, Janell; O'Neill, Joseph; Talty, Judith; Bull, Marilyn J.; American Journal of Occupational Therapy, Vol. 64, No. 5, pp. 804-808Publication Date: September/October 2010
Study compared observed and reported practice among children with special health care needs transported in wheelchairs with the recommendations from the American National Standards Institute/Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America (ANSI/RESNA) Committee on Wheelchairs and Transportation voluntary standards for best practice using wheelchairs in vehicles. A convenience sample of 20 vehicles exiting the garage of a children’s hospital was observed. Certified child passenger safety technicians gathered driver demographics and the child’s reported medical condition, weight, age, clinic visited, and relation to the driver. Technicians observed how the wheelchair and occupant were secured. Mean age of the 20 children was 10.6 years, their mean weight was 65.5 pounds, 12 of them were male, and 18 were categorized into the neurologic and neuromuscular diagnoses category, while the remainder had diagnoses related to pulmonary issues and developmental delay. Fifteen manual and 5 power wheelchairs were used as transportation devices, of which only 5 of the manual wheelchairs met WC19 standards. Of the 20 vehicles, 90 percent used four-point tie-down systems to secure the wheelchairs. A total of 88 percent of the drivers tied the wheelchairs down correctly, 20 percent used a separate lap-shoulder belt to secure the occupants, and 25 percent used lap trays, which are not recommended. Fifteen participants traveled with medical equipment secured inappropriately. Study limitations and implications for future research are discussed.
Published by: American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc. (AOTA) (Website:http://www.aota.org)
This publication is included in the library of the National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC), accession number J59495
