Abstract
BackgroundInsufficient wheelchair training among rehabilitation professionals has been identified as an important factor that hinders access to appropriate wheelchair services. The aim of this study was to develop a toolkit to promote the integration of wheelchair education into academic curricula of rehabilitation programs.MethodsA participatory action research design was carried out in three phases: (1) development of the Initial and Alpha Versions involving secondary analyses of surveys (n = 72), interviews (n = 14), and academic training partners meeting presentations (n = 16); (2) development of the Beta Version based on feedback from collaborators (n = 21); and (3) development of the Launch Version based on feedback from participants attending presentations of the Beta Version at conferences, symposiums, and webinars (n = 94).ResultsOver 100 individuals participated in reviews of the Seating and Mobility Academic Resource Toolkit (SMART). Initial development addressed modifiable factors that perpetuate insufficient wheelchair education in academic curricula (e.g., limited awareness, limited expertise). Internal feedback on the web-based Alpha Version resulted in modifications of appearance and multimedia, structure and design, and navigation. External feedback then led primarily to fine-tuning the navigation of SMART. Positive reviews were received from global wheelchair professionals (i.e., educators, researchers, clinicians). The Launch Version of the SMART (smart.wheelchairnetwork.org) provides a forum for sharing and accessing resources to inform the integration and enhancement of wheelchair content into university rehabilitation programs.ConclusionsAs an open-source open-access online “living document,” SMART has the potential to promote the integration of wheelchair service provision education into academic curricula of rehabilitation programs. Future studies will explore the ease of use and the effectiveness of the SMART.
Highlights
Personal mobility is a fundamental and basic human right [1]
The need to build a competent workforce for the provision of assistive technology is embedded within the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Cooperation on Assistive Technology (GATE) five interlinked areas highlighting its universal importance [4]
The black bars in the figure represent modifiable factors to be addressed by Seating and Mobility Academic Resource Toolkit (SMART)
Summary
Insufficient wheelchair service provision violates the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 20) [1] Does this issue affect the 75 million people worldwide who require a wheelchair for mobility, its negative consequences are numerous, including compromised physical health, safety, quality of life, vocational status, and educational status [2, 3]. The need to build a competent workforce for the provision of assistive technology is embedded within the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Cooperation on Assistive Technology (GATE) five interlinked areas (i.e., people, policy, products, provision, and personnel) highlighting its universal importance [4] It was included as a priority theme in the Global Priority Research Agenda [5] and was integrated as a topic in the first Global Research, Innovation and Education on Assistive Technology (GREAT) Summit [6, 7]. The aim of this study was to develop a toolkit to promote the integration of wheelchair education into academic curricula of rehabilitation programs
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