Services
"We were 19 people being rehabilitated in 2001 and discharged in 2003. I am now the only person alive. The rest have died because of pressure sores. If someone can't afford a wheelchair and is using a wheelbarrow and doesn't have a cushion what do you expect?"
Gladys Charowa, Chair of disabled women's group DWSO, Zimbabwe
Every disabled person has a unique set of needs. Professional service provision can help a person access rights, generate income and play an active role in family and community life.
An assessment and prescription service is key to ensuring that disabled people receive equipment that is the correct size, meets their individual needs and has a positive impact upon their quality of life. A poor fit can mean the development of secondary complications which may even be life-threatening.
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Gait training. An essential part of an amputee's independence. Jaffna, Sri Lanka. |
A child with cerebral palsy being fitted for an adjustable support seat to allow growth and development. |
Passing on therapy skills in practical and appropriate settings to ensure service sustainability. |
Training for key staff in mobility equipment services is essential to ensure that everyone who accesses the service receives appropriately prescribed and fitted equipment, as well as education about their disability and support from other disabled people.
Click here to read about Motivation's involvement in the drafting and publication of World Health Organisation Guidelines on the provision of manual wheelchairs in developing countries. Motivation and other international organisations convened in Bangalore, India, in November 2006 for the first ever global wheelchair consensus conference to support the development of the Guidelines. When the Guidelines are published they will help to professionalise wheelchair provision in developing countries by providing recommendations in three key areas: wheelchair products, wheelchair services and associated training.